


Flying on Little Wings

by spocketlaine



Category: Captain Tsubasa
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-22
Updated: 2015-10-07
Packaged: 2018-02-18 11:00:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 40
Words: 103,840
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2346089
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spocketlaine/pseuds/spocketlaine
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's been three years since she last saw him, and she thought that next time she sees him, she would be alright. Her faced flushed, her knees weak, and her heart wouldn't stop beating fast. It's been three years, and she's still in love with him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Three Years

**Author's Note:**

> yeah, this was mostly on ffn, but i figured i might as well post it here

 

The whistle resounded for the nth time of that day, signaling yet another goal for them. Her team and she gathered around to celebrate her goal, the very first goal she scored since she started high school two weeks ago when the new semester started.

It’s been three years since she started to play soccer again.

_Three years since he left._

She joined her school’s Girls’ Soccer Team back when she was a freshman in junior high. She didn’t exactly know why she started to play it.

_She wanted to feel closer to him._

She guessed she missed it when she watched the boys play back in their elementary days. She gave it up because she thought that since the cheerleaders back then was so wimpy, she would give them a hand.

_She could have left when they started to be what they needed to be, but cheering for him felt more important than her desire to play soccer instead._

The first time she ran across the field while dribbling the ball felt like freedom to her. She could feel the adrenaline and excitement coursing through her as she kicked the ball around the empty field and tried to catch it before it got too far away from her. Her first goal in a year felt amazing and euphoric. She was happy she still could perform great, even if she did stop playing for a year.

She joined her junior high’s girls’ soccer club along with her cousin, happy that she could freely play the sport without caring of other stuff.

_She didn’t feel comfortable fighting for a regular position when she knew she didn’t work hard as much as the other girls._

Besides, then she could still watch the boys match without any conflicts. It’s not like they’re going to miss her. There were many great players from her year that they could pick beside her. Even then, she couldn’t understand how in the world she would be able to help turn the game around.

The first time she was needed to enter the game, she was just on the boys’ field. She was just cheering for them as the Shuutetsu trio and Ishizaki played their very first game as regulars of the boys’ team. They were in the middle of the first half when one of first years –Shiori if she remembers correctly- in the club ran frantically to her. She was saying something, but she was so in distressed her words came out jumbled that Sanae and Ayame, her cousin who decided to accompany her in watching the boys, couldn’t understand what she said.

The next thing they knew, was Shiori pulling on their arm and being in the clubroom changing into soccer gear.

Two of their regulars got sick that day, and one injured their ankle in PE. The other girls who joined three weeks prior all left because the only reason they joined the club was for them to be noticed by the Boys’ Soccer Team. Since they didn’t expect how hard the drills and exercises are, they decided to leave. Sanae was baffled by what they told her, but one of their senpai admitted that they thought she would be one of them considering how much she cheered _him_ on and she didn’t seem to put that much effort into practice.

 _“But,”_ their captain joined in. _“I knew you loved the sport.”_ She threw a jersey to Sanae who barely caught it. Sanae flapped it before her, admiring the feel of the cloth on her skin, before turning it around to see the back.

_10_

She widened her eyes when she saw the number and promptly look back to their captain.

 _“I’ve seen you’re kicks, Nakazawa,”_ she told her, _“Our defense is amazing, but our offense is nothing. You’re the one we need. Don’t even say anything about Suzuki. She have seen you practice all by yourself in the open field. She knows you deserved this more than her. With her ankle injured, she figured this would be the best time to give this to you.”_

Sanae looked at everyone in the changing room, all of whom beaming and giving her encouraging nods. She looked towards her cousin and Shiori, who was grinning alongside their senpai-tachi. They’ve watched her get goals effortlessly against the former members of the club, and never believed that all of scores was just luck.

Don’t get her wrong, she was honored to wear the number 10 jersey. She was happy they thought she was good enough to receive this jersey, but this was _his_ number. The number that he wore to bring victory to them, the number she didn’t know whether she can bring justice to it.

No, she shouldn’t think about that. She needed to change herself. She couldn’t cling forever to him. She shouldn’t walk behind his shadow forever. She was Nakazawa Sanae, the girl who used to breathe soccer. She needed to bring that girl back, and wear this number proudly.

She dropped the jersey on her lap and promptly began to unbutton her shirt.

If she looked back to her captain, she would have seen the proud smile on her face.

She scored a goal in the first 5 minutes of her first game. The other team, since it was a friendly game and knew how badly their school’s often used to be, took them lightly. When she took the first goal, she left everyone dumbfounded, except maybe her cousin. Though there was a small incident with her missing the ball on her first try, but that was because she was nervous. The next try earned them that goal.

They won the game five to one.

That was the first time she realized how happy soccer made her feel. Why did she even forget the sport in the first place?

_She was content to watch him play. That if she were to start playing again, she would never get to see him again. Besides, she could never surpass his skill. Why bother when you knew that someone will be better at you anyway._

She knew the answer right from the start, and cursed herself with her horrible decision. She knew that she wasn’t supposed to fall in love when she’s 11. Look at where it brought her? Heartbroken and stopping herself from the only thing that made her feel free.

That’s why on that day, on her very first victory, she promised herself that she would not be held back by this puppy love that won’t go anywhere and start to fly on her own, without a cage or clips holding her wings back.

It’s been three years since she played soccer competitively. Three years since she continued to bring the Junior High Nationals to their school, one as being their captain.

The whistle resounded for the last time, ending their match. They won three to zero.

It’s been three years since he left. She’s still in love with him.

End chapter.


	2. Her Boys

“Nakazawa! Get your ass here and stop fusing about your boys. They’ll be fine,” Captain Izuzaki’s voice rang throughout the field as she flinched on the slope, talking to the freshman regulars, or the Shuutetsu Trio back in their elementary days, or three of “her boys”.

Although _he_ wasn’t there anymore, she didn’t stop supporting the old members of the Nankatsu FC. She knew what they felt about _him_ , Wakabayashi-kun, and Misaki-kun’s leaving them. They thought that the only reason why they won, was because of those three. They lost all their hope winning ever again.

So, in true “Anego” fashion, she berated all of them, telling them of how much of a disgrace they are. She told them how much those three would be disgusted to be called their former teammates.

_“Soccer is a team sports,”_ she said to them. _“You all won that trophy, as a TEAM. Those three were the only ones people talked about because they’re idiots, but without every single one of you, then those three wouldn’t even be as popular as they are. You guys are all important, whether you score or not, whether you’re in the bench or not, you deserve that National Championships because you all worked hard to earn it. Whether those three are here or not, you can win, and you will because I said so.”_

That woke them up from their slump, and it showed. They all got into the club, all of them becoming regulars by their second year in junior high. She tried to watch every single of their games, as much as her schedule would let her. She cheered and supported them throughout their Junior High days. It didn’t seem like it would stop soon. In turn, they went to hers, cheering the Girls’ team on their matches.

They never stopped calling her “Anego”, no matter how much she told them to stop.

_“You’ll always be ‘Anego’,”_ Izawa-kun told her. _“You never stopped supporting us, even if we never did win Nationals, you’re always there, taking care of us. So you’ll always be ‘Anego’, because you’re our main source of support, and we’re grateful for it.”_

That warmed her heart, so much she wanted to cry and give every single one of them a hug, but instead she didn’t and laughed at their explanation while saying thanks and said how honored she is to still be their “Anego”.

She made them all good luck charms soon after that, for when she was absent for their games. It was a round pendant on a leather cord. At Ayame’s insistence, she put the words “Anego’s Boys” on it. She clearly meant it as a joke and asked if they wanted a different one. Instead of being disgusted with the charm, they absolutely adored it and kept it.

Next thing she knew, they made shirt with “Anego’s Boys” printed on the back, along with their jersey numbers. They wore it at one of the Girls’ Team’s games and she almost fainted when she saw it. They were all wearing it proudly and with no shame. This made every one of her teammates teasing her of how she got herself a fan club of this high caliber. One of her senpai even joked if they’re all in her harem. She could only stutter out in embarrassment.

When she finally managed to talk to them, she told them that they should stop wearing those shirts because people might get the wrong idea, but they relented.

_“Like hell we are!”_ Ishizaki exclaimed. _“We don’t care how people think we’re stupid. We made this shirt for you. We didn’t make it for them. Why the hell would be stop showing our support to the one person who never stopped supporting us?”_

That did it for her. The tears started and never stopped. She barely noticed them fussing and panicking until she hugged Ishizaki while calling all of them stupid and idiots.

_“But you’re all my idiots,”_ she said to them as soon as she calmed down and a tissue in her hand. The smile on her face so big that she could only remember Ayame telling her she was radiating happiness.

She knew that those boys knew of her feelings for their former captain, and they must have thought how much it hurt her when _he_ left, almost as much as them, if not maybe more. Love was different from the friendship they shared with _him._

It was obvious how much she liked him, he was the only one who couldn’t notice it.

They must have decided that they would be there for her, because she’s not as she strong as she tried to be.

So they’ll support her as long as she needed.                                                                             

She’d do the same for them.

So here she was, being berated by her captain for skipping practice because she’s so worried about how those three will perform in this friendly match against a nearby school that wasn’t really know to play fairly.

“Sheesh, Anego,” Taki said. “We’ll be fine. It’s not like it’s our first time playing when we all entered high school.”

“To prove our point, I’ll even score a hat-trick for you, “Kisugi declared.

Izawa snorted from beside him. “You? A hat trick? You wish.”

“You wanna repeat that, asshole?”

“I said-“

“I know what you said! I just wanted to make sure you meant it.”

“I always mean what I say. In fact, I’m sure I’ll be the one doing the hat trick,” Izawa said,

“The hell you think it would be you!”

“Guys, guys,” Taki interjected. “If anyone’s doing a hat trick, it would be me.”

The three soon got into a squabble, and she couldn’t help but sigh as she watched them. How is she supposed to be not worried about them, if they bicker over the smallest things?

“They’ll be fine,” Captain Izuzaki said from beside her. “They’re big boys now. You don’t need to coddle them all the time, Nakazawa. I’m sure they know what to do.”

“I know, it’s just that-“she stopped when she couldn’t exactly voice out her boys.

“They’re your boys, aren’t they?” Captain Izuzaki asked her, to which she answered with a nod. “Then they’re going to be alright.”

They watch them walk towards the field as their captain called for them to talk about strategies.

Her captain’s right. They’ll be fine. In fact, they’ll be great! Because they’re her boys, and she’ll support them, whether she’s watching or not.

“Okay,” she said. Then she cupped her hands on her mouth. “You better be sure you will this game!” she screamed at them. “Score a goal for me!”

The three of them waved at her, as she waved back. The whistle sounded signaling the start of the match. She turned around and followed her captain back towards their field, ready to start practice.

No matter what happens, she’ll be their “Anego” and they’ll be “Her Boys”.

End Chapter


	3. News

“Mark number ten! Don’t ever let her get the ball,” the cries of the opposing team’s coach rang throughout the field.

A week has passed since their first exhibition match, and their second one just started. The teams would have heard about her by this time. Along with Ayame and Shiori, they were the ones to lead Nankatsu Junior High Girls’ Soccer Team to the Nationals. A lot of high schools were recruiting them, even the prestigious Toho Academy. The three of them declined, opting to continue to Nankatsu High School. Besides, they’ll be reunited with their senpai-tachi. She owned a lot to them, and damn her if she ever decided to leave Nankatsu. With the three of them back in the team, the perfect team is back.

The ball soared in the sky above her, and she ran faster, leaving the two were marking her. Once she had the ball, she passed it to Ayame, who wasn’t marked at all. Ayame quickly kicked it towards the goal and earned them their first point.

The whistle rang and they all trudged back to their positions. She saw at the corner of her eye the other team’s coach swore at himself.

She honestly didn’t know why everyone always mark her? Just because she’s the best striker in the team didn’t mean she’s the only person who can score in the damn team. Her teammates worked hard for their skills, and they’re the reason why could even score in the first place. If they should be guarding anyone, they should be guarding every single one of them.

Their forwards, consisting of Junko-senpai, Chieko-senpai, and Shiori-chan, were amazing at their offense. They could peel off anyone easily, letting them be a good choice to receive the ball and sprint down the other side of the field. After her, Shiori was the best forward striker in the team after all. Their defense, with Ogata-senpai, Megumi-senpai, Rika-chan, and Izuzaki-buchou, made the greatest defense in the country. Almost no ball could penetrate their teamwork in protecting the goalie. Emiko-senpai’s as a libero back when she did volleyball, made her a formidable goalkeeper. She could save almost any goal that tried to get past her. Then, they have their midfielders. She, Ayame, and Rinko-senpai could make the impossible passes without any effort. They’re team defined perfection.

But even then, they didn’t really care whether they win or lose. As long as they gave it all they’ve got and had fun, then it’s all good.

The whistle rang and the game continued on.

The other school’s coach began to shout orders on who to mark, but all of them just ignored it. The ball passed easily between them, but it seemed that the other team decided it was time to get serious and fought more furiously.

She couldn’t help but smile.

This, this moment is what she lived for. The adrenaline pumping in her veins and in her opponents. These moments are what made soccer enjoyable for her. That part when you’re giving everything you’ve got because why else are you still fighting? It’s not fun anymore when you’re only playing halfheartedly. Many have worked hard in order to be what they are now, it’s rude to treat them as if what they did was for nothing as at all.

So when that spark of determination entered on her opponent’s eyes, she smiled and gave everything she had.

The ball continued to travel across both sides of the field for a long time, both having a hard time scoring against each other. Her body hurt, her feet were aching, her lungs grasping for air, and she absolutely loved feeling like this.

The whistle rang for the last time to signify the end of the second half. They won again three to one, but she had no regrets playing in this match.

One of the girls on the opposing team dropped on the grassy floor beside her, panting and swearing. She knew that she was disappointed in their lost, but they shouldn’t be.

“That was a great match,” she said as she offered her hand to her.

“Yeah,” the girl answered. “But we still lost.” She took her hand and stood up.

“So?” she retorted. “You gave everything you’ve got. I had fun playing against you guys. Besides it’s a friendly game. Maybe next time, you’ll be able to beat us.”

Both of them started to walk towards their bench areas, all the animosity of the match between them gone.

The girl grinned at her. “You bet!” she exclaimed. “Just you wait, we’ll beat you guys in the prefectural tournament.”

“I look forward to it,” she said.

The girl then ran towards her teammates as she waved goodbye to her. She stood there for a moment, waving to the girl as well.

“You are the friendliest person I have ever met,” she heard her cousin’s voice on her left. She didn’t even notice Ayame walk up to her.

“I can’t help it,” she retorted. “I like having friends.”

Ayame could only sigh in defeat, and she chuckle at her cousin’s actions. Ayame should know by now how she acts. They’ve lived with each other for three years now.

The two of them started to walk back to their bench, chatting along the way. Soon, they reached their destination were handed their water bottles by Shiori. Soon they all started to go to their clubroom to change.

“Great work today everyone,” Izuzaki-buchou told all of them. “But that doesn’t mean we’re done practicing. Remember, the Prefectural Tournament is coming close.”

“I can’t wait for that to come,” Chieko-senpai exclaimed as took of her jersey. “The gang is all back. Plus Rika-chan is with us, this time. Just imagine how awesome we’re going to be.”

“Sanae-chan, Ayame-chan, and Shiori-chan also improved greatly,” Junko added as she took off her socks. “Leading the team last year must have helped them grow. Especially you, Sanae-chan.”

“Being captain must have been hard for you, what with those second years and first years who do the same thing every year,” Emiko-senpai said.

“The freshmen actually joined because of her when we were third years,” Ayame informed them as she buttoned her school uniform. Sanae could only glare at her cousin.

“I don’t believe you,” Chieko said flabbergasted. All the other girls showed agreement to her statement.

“Ask Shiori, she can confirm it for you,” Ayame retorted.                                    

Chieko and the others turned to the meek first year who nodded. “We did a practice match with the boys one day and invited everyone who wanted to watch to come see it. Sanae-chan managed to pull in recruits because of how she played.

“Did the recruits stay?”

“Who won?”

“Sanae-chan went against her boys?”

The voices of their senpai-tachi all mixed together as they fired questions after questions to them.

“Yes, they all stayed. It was a tie, but that was because I wasn’t there. Yes, Sanae went against her boys,” Ayame answered calmly and fully dressed.

“That’s pretty awesome,” Chieko remarked as she finished trying her ribbon of her school uniform. “Who knew that Sanae could convince first years to stay for club activities?”

“She made lots of fun events for the club, from fundraisers to volunteering. The girls versus boys game was her idea as well,” Shiori told them, also fully dressed. “She was a great captain.”

“Of course,” Ogata-senpai scoffed. “I chose her myself.”

“I’m not that great,” Sanae denied weakly. “I just figured that we need some time to relax, and those were the few things I could think of that works.”

“Ne, buchou,” Junko-senpai looked towards their captain. “Why don’t we do those kinds of stuff?”

Akane had a thoughtful expression on her face. “That’s actually sounds like a good idea.”

Then all of the sudden, they exploded. As they walked out of the club room, they all started spouting ideas for things to do, and Akane-buchou, who seemed to like the idea of a girls versus boys match, tasked her on asking the boys if they would be okay with the idea. Soon, they managed to compile of list of fun stuff to do for stress relieving and fundraising.

They all arrived at the gate and saw that “her boys” were also there, seeming to have ended their practice as well.

“Well, there’s your chaperones, Sanae-chan,” Chieko-senpai remarked.

“They’re not my chaperones,” Sanae defended.

Chieko didn’t seem to hear her, or just ignored her. “Honestly, I don’t know how you can stand all that testosterone. How did even managed to get a boyfriend?”

“She never had a boyfriend,” Ayame told them nonchalantly. “Her boys didn’t let anyone they don’t approve of get near her. It’s like they’re her watchdogs.”

“Ayame!” Sanae hissed. “They’re not my watchdogs, or whatever animal you want to label them. They’re my friends. They’re just… protective.”

“I asked them one day why they wouldn’t Sanae date,” Ayame continued on, ignoring her cousin. “They told me that Sanae’s heart could only belong to one person.”

“Ayame, if you don’t shut up, I will literally gut you in your sleep!” Sanae threatened.

“Whoa, Anego, getting violent now are we?” Ishizaki snickered as they all heard her threat.

“Did you say anything Ishizaki- _kun_?” Sanae smiled at the boy.

“N-nothing, Anego.”

“Good, that’s what I thought.”

They all laughed at Ishizaki’s predicament. It seemed that he never learned that he shouldn’t provoke her at all, but not matter what they tell him, he never listened. He said that, sometimes the old Anego has to appear somehow.

“I guess this is where we all separate,” Junko said. “Don’t let anything happen to Ayame-chan and Sanae-chan.”

“We always take care of them, senpai,” Kisugi informed.

“Just making sure, my little kohai.”

“Noted,” Kisugi gulped from Junko’s tone.

They all finally separated and went their own ways. Their group towards the left, and the Girls’ Team towards the right. She didn’t know when or how it started, but Ayame and she have always walked home with the boys after practice. Maybe it’s because they get out at the same time, maybe it’s because they all go to the same direction. Either way, she liked doing this.

It brought them all closer together.

They all talked during this time, from schoolwork to practice. Sometimes, they all just goof off, or joked around. It was fun, and she would cherish this moments forever.

“Hey, are you guys up for another girls versus boys match?” Ayame asked, clearly forgetting that it was her cousin’s task. She won’t complain. It saved her from actually doing it. “Akane-buchou heard about last year’s game and liked so she’s asking if it’s okay.”

“I would be,” Taki answered. “Don’t know about captain and coach.”

“Actually, captain might be okay with it,” Izawa informed them. “Beside’s, it’s going to be really exciting with the upcoming events.”

“Now that you mention it,” Kisugi pondered. “You’re right! Dude that would be so great!” Soon, the other boys all said the same thoughts as them.

Ayame and Sanae looked at each other in confusion. What in the world are they talking about?

“Woah, woah,” Ayame interrupted. “May I remind all of you that there are two girls here who don’t understand boy talk?”

“Oh, sorry about that,” Izawa apologized. “Masaru just told us great news at practice today.”

“Great news?” Ayame asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Well, we were all just talking, and then Masaru came running to us, all excited with a letter in his hand-“

“Just to get to the point.”

“Yes ma’am,” Izawa saluted. He took a deep breath and said the words Sanae didn’t think she would hear again for 20 years.

“Tsubasa’s coming back.”

End Chapter


	4. It Never Stopped

“And it’s not just him!” Ishizaki added excitedly. “Wakabayashi and Misaki are going to be here as well.”

By that point, Sanae didn’t hear anything anymore.

He was coming back. He was coming back. He was undeniably, for sure coming back.

That phrase continually repeated throughout her head. She didn’t know how many times she imagined hearing those words and how she’s going to react to that news. For years, she’s been imagining what she would say, what she would do, and all of them would possibly end with her welcoming back with a smile, clearly showing that she moved on from this puppy love.

But, it was too soon.

She didn’t know what to do, didn’t know what to say, didn’t know how to act, and she still hadn’t moved on, hadn’t let go.

“-nego, Anego? Are you alright?”

“Huh?” she snapped out of her thoughts. She saw them all looking at her worriedly, and she tried to smile just to ease them.

“I’m fine,” she waved their concern off. “That is really great news! Do you guys know when they’re coming back? We should throw them a party to welcome them back,” she suggested.

“According to the letter, they were all going to meet up in Brazil and ride a plane together from there. They said they should be arriving around the beginning of Golden Week,” Taki told her. “A party does sound great!”

The boys then started to exchange ideas of what they should do for the party, and slowly Sanae’s smile grew into a frown.

She has to think of a way she could get away from this. Sure, it would be nice to see Wakabayashi-kun and Misaki-kun, but she’s not ready to meet _him._ She didn’t think she’ll ever be.

Call her a coward, and maybe she is, but she’s not going to force herself in a situation that she knew will only break her heart again.

“Hey, we should tell Mrs. Oozora about this!” Ishizaki exclaimed excitedly. “We’re by their house anyway. I’m sure she’ll want to join on this.”

Sounds of agreement came from all of them, and soon they decided to all head to the Oozora household to bring the news.

“You wanna come with us, Anego?” Kisugi asked. “I’m sure Oozora-san would love to see you. Not to mention, Daichi adores you. He’ll be excited to see you.”

Sanae gave a defeated smile. She would love to see the Oozora’s, but she’s just too tired right now and only wanted to go home.

“You guys go ahead,” she told them. “Ayame and I still need to help my mom with the shop. You know how busy it gets at this time.”

They all whined their complaints about how unfair she’s being, but she didn’t mind it. The faster she could get away, the better.

She could feel Ayame’s stare directed at her, and she thanked whoever was out there that her cousin didn’t say anything.

“Fine,” Ishizaki relented. “But don’t blame us when Daichi latches on to you once he sees you again.”

Sanae chuckled, “I won’t. And I’m not going to complain. Daichi’s my favorite out of all of you guys.”

They all whined again, but it didn’t last long since they all separated at the intersection. Ayame and she going to the right while they continued straight to the Oozora household. The two of them started to walk silently, until Ayame broke the silence.

“You’re not going to that party, are you?” she stated. It wasn’t even a question anymore.

“No,” she answered solemnly. “I don’t think I am.”

“You know you’re being a coward,” Ayame continued.

“I know,” she said.

“You’re being an idiot.”

“I know.”

The shop got nearer every second. They could see their customers who chose to eat outside.

“You’re being unfair towards them.”

“I know.”

They reached the side door and Sanae had her hand on the door knob.

“You’re being selfish, Sanae,” Ayame told her.

“I know

Ayame’s face softened. “You still love him don’t you?”

She gave a sad smile to her best friend. ”I never stopped.”

She opened the door and proceeded to go in.

* * *

The shop did prove to be busy, her mom demanding them to change into the shop’s uniform post haste. It seemed like people were unusually hungry and full of money that day. Though, they did see their regulars, a lot of new ones also there.

Sanae didn’t mind though. It distracted her from thinking about those news. She didn’t need to think about that when she’s working. It would be horrible for their shop if she did something wrong.

Sometimes, she could feel herself starting to think about him again, but she always snapped herself out of it. She worked so hard to stop that happening ever again, so why did such simple news bring it back?

She was glad that she managed to last the whole day without ever tripping.

The shop finally closed for the day, and she decided to take a bath for the night. A good soak sounded good right now.

The warm water felt amazing to her tired body and she couldn’t help but sigh in contentment. This is the perfect way to end a tiring day.

She found herself thinking about him again, but this time nothing could distract her from it. She wondered how’s been. Did he change that much? Or was he still the same person that she fell in love with?

There was many questions running through her head, and she knew she was excited that he was coming back, no matter how many times she tried to deny it.

But she was scared, knowing that she could never have a chance against soccer. She knew that it was unfair to make him pick between her and his dream. She’s practically robbing him of it, if she did.

Besides, she didn’t even know how he feels about her. She wouldn’t ruin whatever friendship they have just because her heart didn’t know who fall in love with.

She lowered her face on the water and closed her eyes.

Sometimes, she wished her heart would just let go.

End Chapter


	5. Hopes and Dreams

She was in her homeroom, waiting for class to start. She had her head down on her desk. She couldn’t sleep last night. She was too nervous knowing that each new day that comes, will be a day closer to his return.

She’s been thinking of ways to greet him, when they see each other again, but all of them sounded so fake and forced, she hated every single one of them.

She gave out a defeated sigh and closed her eyes. Maybe this is all just a dream, and tomorrow will be back to normal. No childhood crushes coming back because the next time she’ll hear his name was when he won the World Cup for Japan.

“Ah, there she is! Anego!”

She opened her eyes and tried to refrain from groaning in frustration. Why did these boys have to be so loud in the morning?

She raised her head and greeted them, “Hey there, Ishizaki-kun. What’s up?”

“Okay, so we went to Oozora-san’s yesterday, right?” the boy said to her. She nodded her head.

Ishizaki continued, “We asked her if she was okay about the party, and she agreed!”

She gave him a huge smile. “That’s great Ishizaki-kun!”

“Thing is, she wants to ask you if you can bake Tsubasa’s favorite cake,” Ishizaki asked.

Ah, fudge. How could she say no to Oozora-san?

“She’s even willing to pay for it. You guys do orders, so she thought it would be great if Tsubasa’s ‘friend’,” cue air quotes, “made the cake for him.”

Sanae gave a weird look towards Ishizaki. “What was that for?”

“What?” Ishizaki asked back innocently.

“Don’t be coy with me Ishizaki-kun,” she glared at him as she crossed her arms. “You know what I mean.”

“Well, if I’m asking then I clearly don’t know what you mean,” he answered cheekily.

“ _Ishizaki_ ,” she hissed.

That stopped his teasing. He knew what would happen if he continued and that tone appeared.

“Alright, alright,” he placated. “Geez, can’t you just take a joke.”

“I can, but your jokes are stupid.”

“They’re not stupid!” he defended.

“They are,” she retorted frankly. “And before you try and prove me wrong, we were in a conversation remember.”

“Fine, you win,” he grumbled. “But anyway. We all know how much Oozora-san adores you. There’s no hiding that she hopes you and Tsubasa get together. Hell, I’m even sure she wants you to be the daughter-in-law.”

Her cheeks flared up to a light shade of pink.

“She does not think that!” she denied vehemently.

“Even everyone hopes you get married, just accept it.”

 _But that didn’t mean he does,_ she thought to herself.

“Well, tough luck,” she told him. “He might already have a girlfriend in Brazil, so kiss those dreams goodbye.”

_It’s better not to hope, unless you’re fine with being disappointed._

“I’ll see what I can do with the cake,” she said. “I’m sure we can make it. Just tell me when you need it and I’ll bring it. I’ll make three for each one of them.”

“Awesome!” Ishizaki blurted out. “I’ll tell everyone about this later. Thanks for this.”

The bell rang to let the students know that homeroom would be starting soon.

“Aw, crap!” he swore. “You should drop by Oozora-san’s and tell her about this. Daichi misses his favorite babysitter and was looking for you.”

“I’ll try,” she shrugged. “No promises though. You better get going before they make you tardy.”

“I will, I will,” he said. “Anego?”

“Hmm?”

“Tsubasa would be really stupid if he let you pass.”

She was surprised by his serious tone. He was rarely like that. Her face softened at his show of concern.

“Like he would ever go out without someone like me,” she laughed. “Just go to class, Ishizaki-kun.”

Ishizaki frowned with how she just waved him off, but didn’t say anything about it.

“Well, ja ne Anego!”

He ran away towards the door and to his room.

When he was gone, only then did the frown show on her face.

 _He_ would never want someone like her. He deserved someone better. 

* * *

They were practicing hard that day, her lungs trying to catch the oxygen she needed. The ball soared over her head and landed directly in front of her. The goal was only a few feet away from her, and she prepared to kick the ball towards. She hit it, but it didn’t go into the goal and hit the post instead.

 _Damn it,_ she swore. That was the fifth time she missed a goal.

“Are you alright, Sanae-chan?” Chieko-senpai asked her. “It’s the fifth time you missed a goal today. Is something wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong,” she said. “Just a lot of stuff in my mind.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’m fine, senpai,” she assured.

“No, you’re not,” Akane-buchou’s voice chimed in. “You don’t miss Nakazawa. The only time you do is when you’re troubled.”

“It’s not that bad,” she tried to argue. “I’ll get a goal next time!”

 _This is one of the things that distracts me from thinking about him, please don’t let me go home,_ she pleaded in her mind.

“Go home, Nakazawa,” Akane ordered. “I don’t know what’s eating you, but I don’t want you getting hurt because you’re not focusing.”

“I promi-“

“Go home,” Akane repeated. “Captain’s orders.”

Sanae gave out a defeated sigh. She knew she could never argue against her captain.

“Hai,” she answered.

Slowly, she walked away from the field. She heard all her teammates’ well wishes and she smiled at them gratefully.

Ayame stopped her for a moment. “We’ll talk about this later okay? I’ll see you at home.”

She nodded her head and proceeded to the clubroom to get her things. She didn’t even change out of her uniform and only put on the sweatshirt and pants that Ayame had their team get. Something about how American schools get them for their sport teams.

She figured this would be a good time to visit the Oozora household. She wouldn’t be doing anything else anyway. She texted her mom about the cakes and she was more than happy to help her make them, even telling her that they would be free of charge.

Visiting the Oozora’s was always something she looked forward to do. They were a pleasant family. Mr. Oozora, if he was there, always welcomed them with a smile. Mrs. Oozara was always glad to have any of them over. She said that they remind her of when Tsubasa used come home with all of them in toe. Daichi, the newest addition after Tsubasa left, was such a happy child and clearly took after his brother. The first time he held a soccer ball, he wouldn’t let go of it. Besides, she babysat the three year old, and still do if she’s free, and they get along quite fine.

But when they all sit down and reminiscence about their younger years, it kind of makes everyone sad.

It was nice visiting the Ooozora’s but then she thought about the empty room that lay untouched upstairs, and it starts to become suffocating.

She arrived at their house and rang the doorbell. She heard a voice coming from the other side of the door and knew that someone was home.

The door opened and revealed the Oozora matriarch.

“Ara, Sanae-chan!” she exclaimed surprised.

“Good afternoon, Oozora-san,” she greeted as she waved.

“What a pleasant surprise,” she remarked. “Come in, come in.” She moved to the side to let her in and called out inside. “Daichi-kun, guess who decided to visit?”

There was a flurry of footsteps heard and out came almost an exact copy of Tsubasa.

“Hey there, squirt,” she greeted the little guy whose eyes lit up when they saw her.

“Anee-chan!” he exclaimed and flung himself to her. She caught him in her arms and both of them laughed in joy.

“You decided to come!” Daichi said to her.

“I started to miss my favorite boy so I decided to come and visit,” she retorted as she nuzzled his face.

“Stop it Anee-chan that tickles!” he giggled.

“But I missed you,” she whined childishly.

“Anee-chan needs to let me go,” he lectured. “Then, I can show you my new toy!”

Then she sighed dramatically, playing along. “Fine,” she said. “But only because I want to see your new toy.” She lowered him on the ground and Daichi latched on her hand, leading her inside the house excitedly.

“Slow down, Daichi-kun,” she chuckled. “Let me take my shoes off first.”

The boy begrudgingly let her, but repeated told her to hurry up. When she was done, Daichi took her hand again, but didn’t run because of the warning from his mother.

“You’re early today,” Oozara-san said as they walked along the hallway.

“My captain let me off early today,” she answered cryptically. Thankfully, the older woman didn’t question any further.

“Would you like some tea?” she asked

Sanae gave a nod. “Tea sounds lovely.”

“Why don’t you come in the kitchen with me, I just boiled some water,” she told her then turned to her youngest. “Why don’t you get your toy, Daichi-kun? You’re onee-chan will stay will Kaa-chan.”

“Okay!”

Daichi finally let go of her hand and quickly went to the stairs.

“No running on the stairs,” Oozora-san reminded.

“Sorry!”

He was already up by then.

“That boy has too much energy,” Oozora-san shook her head. “Sometimes I can’t keep up.”

Sanae smiled as they both went inside the kitchen. “I guess it’s just part of growing up. I remember being as energetic as Daichi-kun.”

“I remember Tsubasa being like that as well. He ran everywhere and I could barely run after him,” Oozora-san told her. “Make yourself at home Sanae-chan. I’ll be with the tea in a minute.”

“Take your time, Oozora-san.”

She took a seat on one of the chairs surrounding the table. Oozora-san brought two mugs, the smell of tea coming from them. Sanae accepted the mug gratefully and took a small sip from it. The warmth of the liquid quickly spread around her body, making her sigh in contentment.

“I take it that Ishizaki-kun relayed my message to you?” Oozora-san asked as she sat across from her.

Sanae nodded and sat the mug down on the table. “Hai,” she answered. “I asked my mom after school today and she said it was fine. You don’t have to pay for it. We’ll do it for free.”

“I can’t possibly do that,” Oozora-san argued. “I’ll pay for it.”

Sanae waved her hands. “Don’t worry about it! We decided this would be our ‘welcome back’ gift for him. We even decided to make one for Wakabayshi-kun and Misaki-kun. It’s no trouble at all.”

Oozora-san gave a small pout, but gave out a defeated sigh. “Alright,” she conceded. “You win.”

Sanae grinned victoriously as a comfortable silence fell over them. They both took sips from their tea as listened to the ticking of the clock. A few moments later, Oozora-san broke the silence.

“Has it only been three years?” she asked. “It feels like he left more than that. Now he’s coming back next Monday.”

“You feel like time moves slowly when you’re missing someone,” Sanae said, looking at her reflection on the tea.

“Daichi’s starting to look like him every day, sometimes I catch myself about to call him instead of Daichi,” the older woman continued. “But, Tsubasa’s finally reached his dream.”

Sanae looked up and gave her a puzzled look. Oozora-san chuckled at her confused expression.

“He got a contract with the main team of Sao Paolo FC. He’s been playing for their B team since he turned 14. They youngest in history, but now they want him in their main team! They told him if he’ll have a position when he reaches 18,” she answered.

“That’s amazing!” Sanae exclaimed, happy for his accomplishment.

“Isn’t it?” Oozora-san agreed. “Roberto managed to convince him to come back and finish high school.”

Her heart skipped a beat.

“Oh,” she mumbled and looked down again. “I see.” She raised her head again, this time showing a smile. “It must be relieving to have him close by again.”

“Very,” Oozora-san admitted. “Then I don’t have to worry whether he washes his laundry, or if he was eating healthily. Honestly, sometimes that boy worries me. You know how he is, Sanae-chan-“

She chuckled fondly as she listened to the older woman rant about her oldest. But, she could see how much Oozora-san loved his son so much. She guessed its part of being a mother, always thinking about your children, even if they’re far away.

“When Tsubasa starts school at Nankatsu, can you do me a favor and take care of him for me, Sanae-chan?”

“Huh?” Sanae snapped out of her thoughts, before processing what Oozora-san said. “Of course, Oozora-san! I’ll do my best.”

The Oozora matriarch smiled teasingly. “Maybe then, Tsubasa finally notices you. But I don’t want grandchildren yet okay? I’m still too young for them.”

Sanae, who was sipping on her tea, flushed a bright red and started choking. “Oozora-san,” she gawped. The older woman could only giggle at her predicament. Sanae looked down towards her hands, her eyes softening and a small frown on her face.

“Am I that easy to read?” she muttered, but clear enough for the woman could hear her.

“I just know you that well, Sanae-chan,” Oozora-san answered, bringing the mug to closer to her. “I used to be in your shoes. I can see a girl when she’s in love. You’re just one of many I’ve seen.” She paused to sip on her tea. “I just hope Tsubasa finally realizes there is more to life than soccer.”

Sanae didn’t answer for a moment, clearly understanding the hidden message in her statement.

“He doesn’t need to be held back by small things like this,” she whispered. The Oozora looked at her in concern and was about to say something, but was interrupted by Daichi holding a soccer ball.

“Anee-chan look at my new toy!” Daichi demanded.

Sanae’s expression changed in a second, matching the boy’s exuberance. “Eh? But that’s just a normal soccer ball. I thought your toy would be something bigger.”

“Kaa-chan bought it for me yesterday,” he exclaimed, ignoring Sanae’s statement. “Come on, come on. Let’s go play outside!”

Daichi proceeded to drag her out of the kitchen.

“H-hey wait a second, Daichi-kun,” she spluttered. She looked back towards the older Oozora. “Thanks for the tea, Oozora-san! Daichi-kun let me get my shoes on. Slow down!”

“Anee-chan hurry up!”

* * *

She closed the door to her room silently and proceeded to lay on her bed. The shop wasn’t as busy as it was yesterday, and her mom told her to rest, clearly concerned for her wellbeing. Ayame still wasn’t home, practice might have ran longer considering they’ll be off for a week for the holidays.

She didn’t do that much, but she felt exhausted. It must be because of Daichi. That child has too much energy. Every time she looked after him, it always left her tired beyond belief. Add soccer to the equation and he’s pretty much a big ball of sunshine.

She got up from her bed, deciding to start doing her homework. She went to her desk carrying her book bag. She got out her Math book and notes, along with her pencil case. She did have a test on the material tomorrow. To remember the formulas, she usually rewrite it on a small notepad at least three times. She was about to get the notepad from her one of her desk’s drawers, but realized too late that she opened the wrong one.

She stared at the neatly piled envelopes inside the drawer. They were all unsealed, but it was alright. They weren’t going anywhere after all.

She trailed her fingers on the top envelope’s surface, before gingerly lifting it off from the pile. She opened it and took out the perfectly folded paper it contained. She unfurled the paper and silently read what she wrote all those years ago.

It was a letter to him, like all the other ones in the drawer. She chuckled at how she wrote when she was young. There was still that tone of boyishness in them, a kind of scrawl that wasn’t really elegant, but it wouldn’t be considered chicken scratch either.

What made her sad though, was how much happiness and familiarity was on it.

The young her wasn’t as scared as she is right now, didn’t feel the same insecurities and grim outlook of this crush that evolved into something more, believed in something quite impossible.

_Good luck out there Tsubasa-kun! I’ll be rooting for you._

The door to her room opened and she quickly dropped the letter back to the drawer, closing it as fast as possible.

Her mother’s head peaked in and looked for her.

“Ayame just came home and dinner will be ready soon,” her mom announced. Then a small teasing smirk appeared on her face. “What are you hiding?” she inquired.

“Nothing,” she answered a little too fast.

“Is it a love letter?” her mother teased.

 _Does it count?_ she asked herself.

“Really, Mama. It’s nothing,” she confirmed. “Just some old papers.”

Her mother knew something was wrong and she’s not someone easily fooled.

“If something’s bothering you, I’m always open,” she told her daughter. “I know it’s hard for you knowing that he’s coming back, but don’t keep it all in.”

She smiled gratefully at her mother. “I won’t,” she said.

Her mother smiled back. “Now come out here and help set the table. I’m sure your cousin’s starving if she came home this late.”

She gave out a laughed and told her mom she’ll follow after she fixed some of her stuff.

“Don’t take too long,” her mother said and walked back towards their kitchen.

She opened the drawer again and took out the letter, scanning it once more. After a few moments of just staring at it, she folded it again and put it inside the envelope. She closed the drawer once more and stood up from her chair, getting out of her room.

When she reached the dining table, everything was already prepared. Ayame and her mother were already sitting around it, ready to eat.

“Mou, Sanae-chan!” Her mom pouted childishly. “You’re late. The food is starting to get cold.”

“Sorry, sorry,” she apologized as she took her seat beside Ayame.

“I’m starving you know,” Ayame told her. “Don’t deprive me of my one true love. You know how I could be when not fed.”

“I said sorry,” she repeated. “Sheesh, can’t you be a little patient?”

“No.”

Sanae sighed, “I tried.”

They all clasped their hands and said: “Thank you for the food!” They all then started to dig in.

Conversations over dinner consisted of how school was today, was the shop busier than usual, a little bit of town gossip, soccer news, and other mundane topics. Her mother decided to spice things up that night.

“Your grandfather called this afternoon,” she informed the two girls.

“Really?” Sanae asked. “What did he say?”

“He wants us to be over at the Manor for Golden Week,” her mother said. “He said he wanted to see his children and grandchildren this Children’s Day.”

Their grandfather, who was an owner of a chain of high class hotels and resorts all over Japan, could rarely spend his time with his family because of his busy schedule. It’s no surprise that he wanted to see them on the longest holiday for Japan. Though circumstances often got in the way of family bonding.

“But I told him we might pass this year,” her mother said. “I told him how you have some friends coming back from abroad and you wouldn’t want to miss the party you guys are throwing for them.”

Sanae’s grip on her chopsticks tightened. This was it. This was her chance to miss that party. Her cowardly excuse to not see him right away.

“It’s fine,” she said. “We’ll go. We rarely see Oji-san as it is. I don’t want to hurt his feelings.”

Ayame’s stare was boring into her, accusing her of how much of a coward she is.

“But Tsubasa-kun’s homeco-“ her mother tried to argue.

“Tsubasa-kun can see me some other time,” she countered. “He’ll be enrolling at Nankatsu High. He’ll see me in school. Besides,” she smiled a little too forcefully, “I don’t think he’d even notice I’m not there.”

Then before they could even retort, she continued. “We can make the cakes the day before and deliver them to Oozora-san the day we leave.”

Her mother’s lips grew into a thin line, something that signified she’s not happy with her. Ayame went back to eating, though without her usual chatter.

“Fine,” her mother conceded. “But, you’re the one going to explain to Oozora-san and you’re boys why you’re not going to be there.” Then she proceeded back to eating.

Dinner ended in silence that night.

* * *

 

She was in the middle of watching Ponyo*, her favorite movie, when someone knocked on her door. She called for the person to come in without pausing the movie. She already knew who it was.

“You found your excuse,” she heard Ayame’s voice amidst the movie’s volume. By this time, she knew she wasn’t watching anymore. “You don’t have to go the party.”

“I guess I have,” she said, not taking her eyes of off the TV screen.

“You’re boys would complain about this,” Ayame added as she sat beside her on the bed.

“That’s why I not telling anyone but Oozora-san,” she replied.

“They’ll be looking for you.”

“I know,” she responded.

“They’ll be angry at you.”

“I’ll bake them cookies as an apology.”

“That’s not enough.”

“I know.”

There was silence between them as the movie continued to show Ponyo and Sousuke’s story, ignorant of the mood between the two cousins.

“What’s so bad about meeting him again after three years?” Ayame asked, frustrated by her cousin’s stubbornness and cowardliness,

This time, Sanae finally looked at her.

“Because I’m a selfish idiot.”

End Chapter


	6. Return

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks to Vicki27 for bookmarking and giving me kudos!

All three of them carried the three rectangular cakes into the Oozora home. The matriarch guided them towards the kitchen. Daichi hovered their legs, trying to get a glimpse of the baked goods. Oozora-san tried to make him stop doing that, which Daichi only obeyed when Sanae almost fell over from trying not to step on the three year old.

Once they put all cakes on the kitchen’s table, they all finally managed to breathe out in relief. Oozora-san and Daichi took a peek on the cakes, gasping in delight when they saw what they look like.

“These look amazing!” Oozora-san exclaimed. “You guys made a wonderful job making them. I’m sure those three will be love this when they see it.”

“Kaa-chan, can I have one?” Daichi asked as he eagerly pointed at one of them.

Oozora-san ruffled her son’s head. “Not yet, darling. These are for your onii-chan and his friends. Let’s wait until they arrive, okay?”

“Eh?” Daichi whined. “But I have to wait forever!”

They all chuckled at the little boy’s statement, clearly showing a child’s impatience, something most children seem to have.

“But, it really is disappointing you wouldn’t be here to welcome them back, Sanae-chan,” Oozora-san lamented as they all walked back towards the front door. “I guess family comes first.”

She could feel her mother’s and Ayame’s calculative stare at her, and she gulped inconspicuously. There was a sinking feeling in her stomach that she tried to ignore, but couldn’t.

“Yeah,” she said, refusing to look at her eyes, or anyone’s for that matter. She felt that if she looked at them, then she’ll be forced to stay. “Oji-sama rarely sees us, so he must have figured that Golden Week will be one of his few chances to spend time with us.”

Her mother and Ayame already went back to car, saying a quick good-bye to the Oozora’s. She stayed a few more minutes to say her farewells. She was glad that they decided to do that, then they don’t have to hear something she failed to do.

“The boys will look for you,” Oozora-san told her, something her family have repeated countless of times.

“Wait, you’re not gonna be here?” Daichi asked.

“Sanae-chan has to visit her grandpa for the week, Daichi-kun,” Oozora-san explained.

“But I- y-you said that you’d meet my nii-chan with me!” Daichi stuttered. Sanae could already the tears coming out of his eyes. “I’m scared to meet him.” He said as he rubbed his eyes.

Sanae sighed through her nose. She hated seeing Daichi crying, even more when she was done who made him do it. Daichi never saw Tsubasa before, and the times when his parents could talk to him using a webcam, Daichi was already asleep. She made a promise to the little boy that she’ll be there when he and Tsubasa finally meet, and now she broke it. She had never broken a promise to him before, and he must have felt really betrayed.

She hated herself more for doing this.

She crouched on down to the boy’s height. “Sweetie, don’t be scared,” she soothed. “Your brother is one of the nicest person I know. He’s not going to hurt you. Didn’t your Kaa-chan tell you that?”

Oozora-san nodded in confirmation.

“But, but, what if you’re wrong?” Daichi countered.

“Daichi, look at me,” she started in a serious tone. The boy stopped his sniffing and turned to face her. “Your brother will be the greatest person you’ll know. _He’s_ the greatest person I know. Take my word for it. Besides,” she ruffled the child’s hair. “When have I ever been wrong?”

Daichi rubbed the snot from his nose with his finger, then smiled at her. His Anee-chan was right. Tsubasa-nii will never be a bad person. Anee-chan has never been wrong before, and surely she’ll get this one right.

“I’ll miss you,” Daichi said as Sanae gave him a hug.

Sanae chuckled into the boy’s ear before they separated. “I’ll only be gone for five days, Daichi-kun. And you’ll have your nii-chan to play with. You won’t even notice the week pass by because he’s a beast in soccer and he’ll teach you all his tricks. You won’t even have time to think of Anee-chan, who’s stuck with jolly grandpas who’re very emotional at their age.”

Oozora-san hid her laugh from behind her hand, but Daichi could only tilt his head to the side in confusion.

She ruffled the boy’s hair one last time before she stood up. “I’ll be back before you know it. I’ll even bake you cookies to apologize for breaking a promise.”

“Really?” Daichi exclaimed.

“Yup!”

Daichi then held his pinky finger up to her, a tradition they always did for promises. “Promise?”

She linked her own pinky to his small one.

“I promise.”

She waved back to them as the car started to move away from the Oozora house.

The sinking feeling in her stomach never left throughout their drive.

 

* * *

 

He looked out from the window of the plane. The Pacific Ocean’s water sparkled under the sun’s light. He could see land a few miles away from them, and felt his body shiver in excitement.

Finally, after three years, he would be back. He would finally be home again.

Misaki and Wakabayashi dozed off beside him. They were probably tired from all the plane hopping they’ve made from Europe to Brazil just so they could go home with him. He was touched by their thoughtfulness, and readily agreed to the arrangement.

He thought back on the reasons of their coming back to their homeland. First of all, he was finally contracted to play for Sao Paolo FC, but that wouldn’t happen until he turned 18. Roberto suggested that he return to Japan and finish high school, but the way he said it made him think that’s not all there is to it. Misaki-kun’s father was contracted by a rich Japanese business owner to paint many paintings for him and convinced them to come back to Japan. Wakabayashi-kun’s reason was said that Mikami-san was needed back in Japan for some reason, and he just went with his coach.

_“Besides,” Wakabayashi started. “It’s been a while since I’ve last been to Japan. I figured this would be the right time to come back.”_

All three of them thought the same thing. It was the right time to come back. Three years is a pretty long time to be gone from home.

The adults sat on the row before them, snoozing as well.

He began to wonder about this friends back home. Did they still play soccer? Did they all grow into strong players? Did they changed a lot?

He hoped not. It would be a terrible if they all changed back into someone he didn’t know anymore. Though according to the letters and emails he received, it seemed like they hardly changed at all. He thought that was a good sign. It would be awesome to play with all his old friends again.

There was also someone he was really looking forward to meet. His little brother Daichi. He was born long after he left for Brazil, and that’s the one thing he regretted missing. Growing up all by himself was a little lonely, so the news of having a little brother brought joy to him. He always wondered how Daichi would be. According to his mom, it seemed like Daichi was quite like him, even sharing the same love for soccer as him. Though his friends might have influenced his brother, his mother’s letter said.

Speaking of friends, his thoughts drifted to a certain loud cheerleader. Anego, as they all called her. He chuckled remembering how they used to call her that all those times because they never knew her name. He only did know when he remembered visiting the cafe their family owned and heard her mom calling her by her first name to help them out in the shop. Then, when he called her by her last name and had confused everyone, he found it amusing that even she forgot what her real name was sometimes.

The letters from his friends proved that they still call her that, though she wasn’t part of the cheering squad anymore. That didn’t mean she stopped cheering for them, they said. She still go to their games, but sometimes her schedule conflicts with theirs so she’s absent to some of them.

That actually surprised him. He remembered her saying that she would be the soccer club’s manager someday, but it looked like she wasn’t. He hoped it wasn’t his fault she didn’t do it. He remembered one of them teasing her that she would only do that because he was there. He always thought she would be a great manager.

He asked about it one time in an email, but they answered that wasn’t the case at all. She just changed her mind about it and he wasn’t at fault at her sudden decision change. It didn’t really help his mind at all. He still wanted to know what exactly made her decide to join a different club, and he even contemplated about sending a letter, or even an email just to know more.

He didn’t though. He didn’t exactly know what to write to her, and just asking about her joining a different club felt really rude. So, in the end, he didn’t send any of those.

There seemed to be something inside him that hoped that she would be there helping and supporting the team when he came back.

Granted, he didn’t know when he was coming back, but still. It felt different knowing that she wouldn’t be there in his friends’ matches, as if they couldn’t play their fullest without her voice in the crowd, cheering for them.

There was a small part of him that expected a letter or an email telling her version of the matches his friends played. He was looking forward to her weird descriptions of the actions the others did in the game.

But he never got one.

He tried to not feel disappointed. She must be really busy. Junior high is quite different from elementary. Grades and clubs have to take up a lot her time. She probably helped around their café more often too since she’s older. She didn’t have time to write to someone like him.

Misaki stirred from beside him, snapping him from his thoughts.

“Are we there yet?” Misaki-kun yawned.

“Almost,” he answered. “Just a few more hours, I think.”

“Great,” Misaki smiled. “I can’t wait to see everybody.”

He smiled in agreement and noticed that Wakabayashi was also waking up from his sleep. They both greeted him a good morning. Wakabayashi yawned before replying back and asking the same thing Misaki did. He answered the same thing he said to Misaki. They all started to chat, especially about their friends, and of course soccer. They talked for quite some time and before they knew it, the captain finally called out they were landing in the Shizuoka Airport.

 

* * *

 

Once they stepped off the plane, they officially confirmed to themselves that they were in Japan. The people, the signs, everything felt so familiar to them.

“It’s nice to be back,” Misaki declared as they walked towards the arrivals’ area. They weren’t carrying that much. A simple bag with a few change of clothes. Apparently they all shared the mentality that they could just buy their clothes here.

“It does,” he agreed as they went down the elevator.

“It’s supposed to be Golden Week, right?” Wakabayashi asked. “I guess that’s the reason why there’s many people leaving.”

“Oh you’re right!” Misaki said. “I wonder if any of our friends are here. I was looking forward to playing a match with them sometime this week.”

“Well, you don’t think wonder,” Wakabayashi informed.

“Huh?” They both looked at him in confusion. Wakabayashi answered by pointing at a group of people holding a banner that read: _Welcome home, Tsubasa, Taro, and Genzou._ Tsubasa could spy his mother with them, holding a small child’s hand. It must be Daichi, he figured.

He smiled and walked towards them. Misaki and Wakabayashi followed him as well as the two adults who walked much slower.

“Kaa-san!” he called out. He saw his mother turn to his direction, who beamed as she found him.

“Tsubasa-kun!” she exclaimed and waved him over. His friends heard him and faced their direction. Upon seeing them, they all immediately grinned.

The three of them ran towards them as those welcoming them back did as well. They all met in the middle, giving each other hugs and greeted each other warmly. The other people in the airport must have been looking at them weirdly, wondering why such a huge crowd of boys were all gathered in there. He barely noticed his mom greeting Misaki-san and Mikami-san from the sides.

“Man, look at you guys,” Ishizaki remarked as they calmed down a little. “You three look really different.”

“And you look like you haven’t changed at all,” Wakabayashi teased. “I don’t even think you grew at all.”

“What did you say?” Ishizaki roared. “I’ll have you know, I’ve grown about 14 inches since you last saw me. “

“Really,” Misaki questioned innocently. “It doesn’t seem like it.”

“Wha- Misaki! You traitor.”

All of them started to laugh at Ishizaki’s predicament. He was the easiest one to rile up. It all reminded them of their days as the members of Nankatsu FC. Laughing and joking around as they practiced.

“Tsubasa,” his mother’s voice was heard from all their ruckus.

“Kaa-san,” he separated from his friends and gave his mother a big and long hug.

“Oh, look at you,” Oozora-san said as they separated. “You’re all grown up now. Did Brazil treat you alright?”

“Brazil’s amazing mom,” he told her. “You should go there sometime. I think you’ll like it.”

“We’ll see,” They chuckled. Then Tsubasa noticed the little boy hiding behind his mom’s legs. He crouched down to see him closer.

“Is this him?” Tsubasa looked up to his mom, who nodded. She nudged the little boy towards Tsubasa, but the he only hid closer to the older woman. “Don’t be shy, Daichi-kun. He won’t bite you.”

Tsubasa smiled Daichi. “So your name is Daichi?” the little boy shyly nodded. “I’m Tsubasa, or really your nii-chan. It’s nice to finally meet you?”

“Y-you’re my nii-chan?” Daichi asked, a little reserved.

Tsubasa nodded. “Sorry I couldn’t meet you sooner,” he apologized.

“It’s okay,” Daichi mumbled, looking down while holding his mom’s legs tighter. “Kaa-chan told me it was for something important to you.”

“Yeah,” Tsubasa confirmed. He was starting to actually get nervous about this. Though he couldn’t blame the little guy. They never met, so right now, he’s not yet his older brother, but a stranger.

“You,” Daichi started. “You play soccer, ne?”

Tsubasa looked surprised at the question, but smiled nevertheless. His mom did tell him that Daichi loved soccer as much as he does.

“Yep!” he confirmed. “How about you?”

“Of course!” Daichi answered, somewhat insulted that Tsubasa would ask that. “It’s the best sport ever!”

Tsubasa laughed. This boy was definitely related to him. “I’m not going to argue with that. That’s why I came to Brazil after all.” This seemed to have caught Daichi’s attention. Good, maybe this would be the start of their relationship of with his brother.

“You went to Barahil to play soccer?” Daichi asked, curious. “Did you get prick by many thorns? Did it hurt?”

Tsubasa and everyone around him laughed. “No, no, I didn’t get hurt by roses. I went to Brazil. B-R-A-Z-I-L. It’s a country far from Japan and many soccer players come from there. I went there to play and learn to be a better soccer player.”

“Really?” Daichi’s eyes seemed to sparkle when talking about soccer.

Tsubasa nodded. “Tell you what,” he started, “When we get home, I’ll teach you some of the tricks I learned while I was there.”

“Eh? Really?” Daichi finally let go of their mother’s legs, who looked at Tsubasa with concern and disagreement. Tsubasa gave her a look that said he’ll take over it.

“Uh, huh,” Tsubasa hummed.

“Like really cool super awesome tricks?” Daichi verified.

“As long as I think they’re safe for you,” Tsubasa confirmed.

“Awesome!” Daichi cheered.

“But,” Tsubasa interrupted. Daichi stopped his cheers and looked at him confusedly, but that only made him grin wider. “Only if I get my welcome back hug.”

Daichi’s grin grew wider and tackled him with the biggest bear hug a person his age could make. Tsubasa laughed and returned it back. His friends and family cheered them on, happy for their relationship that should have started long ago.

He looked at everyone with him. He missed this. He wasn’t even going to deny it, but he really missed this. His mom’s smile, his friends’ jokes and laughs, the familiar smell of Japanese food.

God, was it good to be back home.

But, he couldn’t find her anywhere.

That would have made everything perfect.

 

* * *

 

“Cheers for the return of Tsubasa, Misaki, and Wakabayashi!”

“Cheers!”

They all clicked their glass together, and laughed together. His house was decorated for this special occasion. Streamers were littered throughout the living room and kitchen, and the banner his friends brought at the airport hung somewhere in the house.

The adults were all drinking tea in kitchen, while his friends and him where in the living room, sitting on the floor while in a circle with some snacks and drinks in the middle.

Misaki and Wakabayashi were talking about their experiences in Europe, his friends listening intently and was amazed by their stories. Even Daichi seemed to be interested in them as well, opting to sit on Izawa’s legs.

It surprised him that his little brother had a close relationship with his friends. They answered that they looked after the boy when his mother was busy. Besides, they were the reason how Daichi knew how to play soccer at such a young age. They taught him.

It did surprise him though when the boy could kick it at such a great height for a three-year-old when Daichi demanded they play as they waited for the others to arrive at their house.

“With you guys back in Japan, just imagine how awesome we could be,” Taki exclaimed as he took a sip from his drink. “Now Hyuuga can shove it.”

“He still giving you a hard time?” Wakabayashi asked.

“Hard time?” Ishizaki scoffed. “More like he never stopped insulting us. Always telling us how low we got ever since the three of you left.”

“Are you guys talking about Kojiro-nii-chan?” Daichi asked as he crawled from Izawa’s lap all the way to Tsubasa. “I think he’s nice.”

“Kojiro-nii-chan?” Misaki asked quite puzzled.

“Hyuuga and Daichi had some history together when Daichi got lost in Tokyo one time,” Kisugi explained. “Hyuuga was the one who saw him and led him back to Oozora-san.”

“Turned out he was good with kids because he had a lot of little siblings,” Izawa added. “Now whenever we have a match, Daichi always looked for him and asked if Hyuuga could play with him. For some reason, Hyuuga can’t turn down kids and the rest is history,”

Tsubasa looked down toward his brother who made himself comfortable on his legs. “So you like Hyuuga-kun, huh?”

“Kojiro-nii-chan is super cool!” Daichi exclaimed. “But not as cool as you.”

Tsubasa ruffled his brother’s hair. “Ah, thanks little man,” he said.

“Geez, Daichi how many times do I have to tell you not to call him your nii-chan,” Ishizaki reminded.

“Why?” Daichi tilted his head to the side. “Are you jealous because he can play better than you?”

“Ooh,” Taki snickered. “Burn.”

“That just have hurt,” Kisugi smirked.

“I think Ishizaki-kun needs some ice for that,” Morisaki teased.

All of them laughed at Ishizaki’s predicament, who was furiously blushing from embarrassment.

“Shut up, all of you!” he roared. Then he turned to Daichi. “No, I am not jealous,” he denied. “Who even told you of such a ridiculous thing?”

“I think it was Aya-nee-chan,” Daichi answered.

“Darn that Kiseki,” Ishizaki seethed. He would have said something worse, but he had to watch what he say around Daichi. Besides, who knows what Tsubasa would do to him? The guy already had this protective aura around Daichi. “I’ll get her back from this.”

“Aya?” Misaki turned to them in question.

“She’s a regular on the girls’ team,” Morisaki calmly explained.

Before they could anything, Ishizaki and Daichi were on it again.

“Nah, Ryou-nii-chan,” Daichi waved off. “I don’t think you can do that.”

“Oh really?” Ishizaki challenged.

“Yup,” Daichi confirmed as he munched on a cookie. “Aya-nee-chan will probably know before you can even do anything. Besides, you’re too stupid to plan a good revenge on her.”

There was a short moment of silence between all of them. They were surprised by what the boy said. But soon, Izawa snorted and started to laugh, the others following after. Except Ishizaki, he was just embarrassed again.

“WHAT!?” Ishizaki shouted.

“Another point to Daichi,” Kisugi snickered. “Man, Tsubasa. I love your brother.”

“I love you too, Teppei-nii-chan.”

“Why would you think I can’t be smart enough to trump Kiseki?” Ishizaki interrupted, still furious.

“Because Anee-chan said so,” was Daichi’s unwavering answer. “And Anee-chan is never wrong.”

Taki nodded sagely. “Can’t argue with that logic,” he said.

“Yes,” Izawa agreed. “Daichi’s reasoning is right.”

Soon, the other people nodded and voiced their agreement.

“Anee-chan?” Tsubasa wondered.

“Daichi’s talking about Anego,” Morisaki answered. “We were calling her that one day when Daichi was with us and it sort of stuck. Daichi started calling her that from then on.”

“I remember the beating we got after that,” Kisugi shivered. “Never wanna get on her bad side again.”

“Beating?”

“We made a vow to never speak of it again,” Taki said. “And we are not going to break it just for you guys.”

Wakabayashi only raised his eyebrow but let it go. That girl did have quite a temper from what he remembered.

“Speaking of Anego,” he started. “Where is she? I would have thought she would be the most excited to be here considering he,“ he pointed at Tsubasa who looked at them in confusion, “would be here.”

Tsubasa had the same thought running through his head, and he was about to ask as well. Wakabayashi just beat him to it.

“Che,” Ishizaki scoffed. “She left this morning to go somewhere. We didn’t even know until Tsubasa’s mom told us this morning.”

“Do you know where she went?” Misaki asked.

“Nope.”

The others shook their head to say they don’t know either.

“Anee-chan went to see her grandpa,” Daichi informed them. All of them turned to look at him.

“How do you know, Daichi?” Tsubasa asked his little brother.

“She told me this morning when they brought the cakes!”

Tsubasa figured he must have been talking about the cakes they saw that were made for them. It made sense. Her family did own a café. They must have ordered it there. Tsubasa have to admit though, the cake they made for him, a double chocolate cake, was really delicious.

“Oh yeah,” Izawa exclaimed. “Why did I forget? Of course. She made the cake.”

“Yeah, and all three of them were delicious,” Taki said. “I can never get tired of her food.”

“Wait,” Misaki interrupted, “She made all three of them.”

“Yeah,” Kisugi confirmed. “Oozora-san asked her to make one. I didn’t expect that she would make three. But, I’m not complaining. Why, you don’t like them?”

“They were amazing,” Misaki exclaimed. “I just didn’t expect she would be this good baking.”

Tsubasa didn’t expect it either, but he thought that was a nice surprise.

“Welcome to Anego’s cooking.”

“Thanks, I guess?”

“I wonder how much Oozora-san paid for one,” Izawa wondered. “I want one on my birthday.”

“Kaa-chan didn’t pay for any of them,” Daichi told them.

“Woah, really?”

“Anee-chan said it was her gift to nii-chan and them to welcome you guys back,” he explained. “She also said sorry for missing you guys. She said she doesn’t see her grandpa as much so they had to visit for five days.”

“That still didn’t excuse her for not telling us sooner,” Ishizaki grumbled as he crossed his arms.

“She’s baking me cookies to say sorry,” Daichi told him.

The others all whined and complained about how unfair it was that Daichi was the only one to get cookies when they deserved some as well. Misaki chuckled at their childishness, while Wakabayashi only rolled his eyes.

Tsubasa smiled, but couldn’t help getting pulled into his thoughts.

She made the cake just for them, for him. And she got his favorite kind to boot. Granted his mother could have told her, but that was one of the best cakes he had. He couldn’t wait until he could thank her properly.

Daichi did say that she would be back in five days. Maybe then, they’ll be able to talk, and catch up with each other. She was one of the few people he hadn’t really heard about from. The little information he got about her for the last three years was from the rare times his friends mentioned her in their letters and emails.

He wondered if she changed a lot. He knew that she wasn’t a big part of their cheering squad anymore, and joined a different club instead. Though he didn’t know what club it is. Now, he kne that she’s a great baker. What else could he learn about her? They were friends, so it’s normal to know more about each other, right?

He couldn’t help looking forward to let the five days past.

End Chapter


	7. Missed Encounters

The smell of cookies lingered in their kitchen. She’d been baking since ten in the morning and has been at it for three hours now, making the cookies she promised for Daichi and the boys. She wanted to give the cookies when they all go back to school on Monday, and only give the one for Daichi today.

But when she looked at her phone the first night she was gone, there were about 54 notifications all coming from the boys. They ranged from messages to pictures telling her how unfair she was, not only from not telling them she’s not going to be in the party, but for promising Daichi cookies and not one for them.

She unlocked her cellphone and looked at the texts they sent five days ago.

_Where’s my cookies?_

_How come Daichi only has them?_

_I demand cookies!!!_

She replied back to them. _I am making you guys some cookies. Just chill out. You’ll get yours as soon as school starts._

_We demand them soon!_

She got a picture of them in some kind of position with their arms crossed and Daichi in the middle looking all –in their mind- macho and intimidating. She only laughed at it and showed to Ayame, who had the same reaction as her. They’re not as scary they thought they were.

 _Fine, your royal asses._ She texted back. _Expect the cookies on Saturday. They’ll be specially delivered by yours truly._

The conversation left at that. Mostly because she ignored the next set of texts. Though, there was one text from Morisaki-kun that caught her eye.

 _Misaki-kun, Wakabayshi-kun, and Tsubasa-kun would like some as well, Anego._ He said. He sent a picture of the three all smiling at the camera.

She first noticed Misaki and Wakabayashi, gushing over how much they looked. They didn’t look as scrawny as they used to be and pretty sure they must caught the eyes of young ladies wherever they went.

Then her eyes landed on him. She felt her heart jump to her throat and her stomach butterflies coming back.

He changed, and at the same time, he hasn’t. The baby fat he used to have almost disappeared completely, possibly because of all the soccer he had done in Brazil. She could see the muscle he gained over training, noting how huge they must be by now. His hair stayed the same, albeit a little longer than they used to be. It still had that thing where it pointed at one direction. She used to often wonder how it did that, and how it would be feel like to run her hand through it.

She shook her head. No, she shouldn’t think about those kinds of things.

She noticed his eyes. Those eyes that haven’t changed for three years. The eyes that showed all sorts of emotion, from joy to determination. Those eyes that she hadn’t meant to fall for.

He was still Tsubasa, even if three years has passed.

The oven’s timer rang to tell her the last batch of cookies are done. She dropped her phone on the table and put on the mittens that was close by. She opened the oven and gently pulled out the tray of cookies as she put it on top of the counter to let it cool off. Quickly, she put the right amount of cookies in the last bags she prepared and had the left overs in a bowl. Once she made sure she made sure her boys each got a bag, she put them in a bigger cloth bag and hoisted it on her shoulder. She grabbed her phone from the table and put it in her shorts’ pocket. She tied her hair in a messy ponytail and headed for the stairs. She did say she would deliver the cookies personally.

Her mom was watching TV as she worked on some of the shop’s expenses. Ayame was in her room, probably on that one blogging website she frequented. Well, it’s not really her business so she didn’t care.

“I’m going now,” she called as she descended from the stairs. Their home is just upstairs of the shop.

“See you later,” her mother answered. “Be careful!”

“I will!”

She got her bike from behind the stairs and took it outside. She put her bag inside the front basket and took a seat on the saddle. When she adjusted everything and made herself comfortable, she started to pedal.

The Oozora’s were the nearest to her, so she decided to drop Tsubasa’s and Daichi’s the first. She knew that she might have the chance to meet him, but she prepared herself for that encounter. She used the last five days to prepare herself if they finally meet. She knew sooner or later it had to happen, so she might as well just go with it.

She arrived at the Oozora’s doorstep and quickly got out of her bike. e HeShe rang the doorbell as she waited for the door to open. The grip she had on her bag’s strap tightened and she could feel her hands getting sweaty and a feeling of nervousness suddenly overcame her. What if it was him that opened the door? Could she really face him bravely as she hoped she could? Or would she run away like she’s been doing?

The door opened and didn’t show him, but Oozora-san.

She didn’t know whether to be relieved or excited.

“Ara, Sanae-chan! You’re back,” Oozora-san exclaimed.

She waved towards the Oozora matriarch, who was then interrupted by her youngest son wheezing past her.

“Anee-chan!” Daichi shouted as he tackled her for a hug.

“I told you I’d bring cookies,” she said as she ruffled the boy’s hair.

“Yay!”

Daichi took the bag of cookies from her hands and gave her another hug. She returned it and went back to face Oozora-san.

“I was dropping by to give the cookies I promised Daichi-kun,” she explained. She then peered over the woman’s back, before biting her lower lip. “Is,” she started nervously. “Is Tsubasa-kun here?”

Oozora-san chuckled at the girl’s apprehension and curiosity.

“Oh, he’s just upstairs, sleeping,” the older woman answered. “He still has some jetlag from his flight.”

“Oh,” she said. Of course, it hadn’t even been a week yet. He’s still adjusting to the time change from flying halfway across the world.

“I can wake him up for you,” Daichi suggested as he munched on a cookie.

“Oh, no, no,” Sanae waved her hands furiously. “Don’t disturb him for me. Let him rest. Besides, I could always see him sometime soon. We’re bound to see each other sometime.”

“Are you sure?” Oozora-san asked. “Tsubasa can always sleep again.”

“I’m positive,” Sanae answered as she got another bag of cookies. “I’ll be delivering the other ‘apology’ cookies to the boys anyway. Can you give this to him for me instead?”

“You can count on me, Sanae-chan,” the older woman took the bag. “I’ll be sure to give it to him. If I can’t I’m sure Daichi will remember, ne?”

“Hai!”

Sanae smiled and ruffled the boy’s hair again. “Thanks squirt. Don’t try to eat it okay. That’s for your nii-chan.”

“I won’t!”

She chuckled and said her thanks to Oozora-san. She went back to her bike and got on. She waved one last time towards the two and went on.

She sighed through her nose as she left their area. She didn’t know whether to be happy that he wasn’t awake and she didn’t have to talk to him yet, or be disappointed that she didn’t see him.

Well, whatever the case, she still has cookies to deliver and they won’t move all by themselves.

 

* * *

 

He was woken up by the ringing of their doorbell. He ignored it and tried to go back to sleep for at least thirty minutes, but found that he couldn’t. He checked the clock beside his bed and was surprised to see that it’s already one thirty in the afternoon. He didn’t know he slept that long. Though, he couldn’t manage to sleep until three in the morning.

He got out of his bed and ran a hand through his hair. Man, it’s already been five days and he’s body was still adjusting to the time here in Japan. He wondered if Misaki and Wakabayashi had the same problem as him.

He changed from his pajamas into something nicer. Grabbing his phone, he went downstairs. He headed straight to the kitchen to try and see if his mom had anything to eat.

“Good morning, Tsubasa-kun,” his mom greeted. “Or should I say good afternoon instead?”

He chuckled. “Either works for me,” he answered. “I just woke up anyway. Do you have anything to eat?

“Well, I did leave some lunch for you,” Oozora- san said. “Let me heat it up for you.”

“Aw, sweet! Thanks mom,” he said as he took a seat by the table. He noticed a bag of cookies on the table and was about to ask if he could eat it when Daichi came in.

“Nii-chan!” The boy exclaimed excitedly. “You’re awake!” The boy then ran at him and got up on his lap. It was amazing how Daichi and he grew really close in just a few days. He guessed it was because of the same fondness they have for soccer.

“Hello to you too, squirt,” he chuckled. “Someone’s energetic today.”

“Anee-chan gave me cookies!”

“Nakazawa-san?”

“Ah yes, Sanae-chan was just here about forty minutes ago,” his mom answered. “She dropped off some cookies for you and Daichi. That one’s yours by the way. You should try one while you wait for your lunch.” Oozora-san pointed to the cookies on the table.

He took it and opened it. Immediately the smell of it hit his nose and he grabbed one right away. It smelled really delicious and couldn’t help but get one. When he took a bite, he wasn’t disappointed at all.

“This is really delicious!” He exclaimed.

“Isn’t it?” his mom said as she dropped a plate of food in front of him. “Sanae-chan’s food are always great. Don’t eat all of it, then you can something for dessert.”

He nodded and put the bag to the side as he started to eat his… brunch. Daichi sat beside from him and took a sip from the sippy cup his mom gave him

“You know,” Oozora-san started as she sat across from him. “It’s a shame you didn’t get to meet Sanae-chan yet. You were still asleep when she came by. She looked like she was excited to see you.”

“Really?” He asked, surprised.

“I think so,” she replied. “But she didn’t want to wake you up and went back to what she was doing.”

“She’s going to drop off the other cookies to the other nii-chan!” Daichi added enthusiastically.

“What for?” he asked.

“It’s too say sorry for missing the party five days ago,” Oozora-san informed him. “I believe she’s dropping them off to everyone. I think she should be done by now.”

“Oh,” he muttered as he bit another cookie. That was the same time the doorbell rang. If he just got up sooner, he could have caught her when she stopped by their house. He was even excited to see how she’d been.

Well, they could always meet up another time. It’s bound to happen sooner or later.

Sure, he was a little nervous. The guys showed him a picture of her yesterday when they all got together and there was some changes he noticed.

She changed, but at same time, she didn’t. She grew her hair a little longer, reaching a little past her shoulders. She didn’t seem to have the tomboyishness she had when they were young, and was a little feminine instead. There was almost no hint of baby fat on her, and he couldn’t help but notice the curves she somehow managed to gain when he was away. Of course, he wasn’t looking for them. He just noticed.

The smile on her face never changed though. It was still the same as it used to be. The smile that she showed whenever she was happy for their victory. Her eyes was still the same as well. The eyes that still showed a whole range of emotion, the eyes that showed how much support she was willing to give.

She was still Anego, even if three years has passed.

He’s phone buzzed beside his hand and saw that it was Ishizaki.

_Hey, up for a game at the old soccer field we use to train? See you at 2_

He looked at the clock and saw that it was 1:45. He still had time to get there.

“Thanks for the food mom,” he said as he stood up. “It was delicious as always.”

“Going on another game?” she asked as she took care of his plate.

“Yup,” he replied. “It’s at two.”

“Don’t push yourself too hard okay?”Oozora-san reminded.

“I won’t.” he said as he tied his shoelaces.

“Can I go?” Daichi asked.

“I’m afraid you can’t Daichi-kun. It’s time for your nap.”

“But I don’t want to take a nap!”

Tsubasa laughed his young brother and ruffled his hair. “If you take a nap now, you can play with me later,” he told him.

“Really? Okay!”

He opened the door, his soccer ball already on the floor, ready for him to dribble.

“I’ll be going now,” he called out and waved to his family.

”See you later,” they waved back.

He went out of their home and took a left to start his run towards the soccer field. His grin was wide and his eyes never left the ball, excited for another game with his friends.

If he would have looked up even for just a second, he would have seen a girl with a messy ponytail, biking to the direction opposite of his.

End chapter


	8. First Day

She never did get to see him over the weekend. She didn’t know whether she was just too busy, or he was the one busy, or life just loved fucking around with her. Just when she was prepared to face him, fate was doing whatever it could to stop it from happening. She could have used it last week when she was avoiding him, but no, it just had to continue for the rest of the week. She only met up with Wakabayashi-kun and Misaki-kun, but that was because she was delivering the cookies

She was even starting to feel excited too.                   

But now, it’s Monday. That means, it’s time to go back to school, and it’s also the three boys’ first day in school. She wasn’t showing it, but she’s actually worried for them. What if they were put in a class and nobody befriended them? Granted, that seemed really impossible. Tsubasa and Misaki were pretty friendly people, and only Wakabayashi has that “do not touch me” vibe. But goddamn, those three couldn’t think of anything but soccer. All the other kids could be weirded out of their obsession over the sport. They might also intimidate them because all three of them transferred from abroad.

Though, the boys were scattered in the six classes for first years. Hopefully, they wouldn’t let the three feel alone.

She was sitting on her desk, waiting for homeroom to start. Morning practice wasn’t that hard that morning. Akane-buchou wanted them to take it easy since they did just come back from vacation. She did warn them to prepare for the afternoon one. She expected them to have their minds away from break and think of the Prefectural tournament coming up next week.

Sanae could only shiver in dread. She was not looking forward for the afternoon practice. Ayame laid her head on top of her desk with a gloomy air around her, possibly thinking the same thing as her.

Her thoughts drifted back to the three. She wondered what their reaction would be if they found out she’s in the girls’ team. She did declare one time that she would be the boys’ soccer team manager. But that didn’t really happen. Instead, she was one of the starting members in the girls’ team.

The bell rang to signal the start of class, snapping her out of her thoughts. The members of her class rushed to their seats and prepare for the homeroom teacher coming in soon. She saw Ayame bedgrudingly raised her head up and straightened the back. Well, she might as well do the same.

The door slid open and in came their homeroom teacher. They all stood up and greeted her a good morning before sitting down again. She coughed as she reached the teacher’s desk.      

“Good morning everyone,” she started in her cheerful tone. “I hope you all had a fun Golden Week. I certainly did.”

“Did you get a date, sensei?” one her classmates teased.

“Of yes I did,” their teacher said absentmindedly, already reminiscing of her “date”. “And let me tell you ab- wait. Why am I telling you this?”

“You’re the one who started it, sensei.”

Their teacher blushed furiously, as they all snickered and laughed. She only chuckled at her teacher’s misfortune.

To be honest, Sanae liked her. Their teacher was young, and understood their batch quite well because of the few differences in their age. Since she was also their English teacher, she often made puns and just made the subject so much easier to learn.

“Anyway,” their teacher coughed again, a little flustered. “I have exciting news for all of you. We are having transfer students!”

“Eh? Really?”

“Are you serious?”

“Ooh, who are they?”

“I betcha they’ll be cute girls.”

“No way, I’m sure they’ll be hot boys!”

The room exploded all at once, and she chuckled silently among their chatters and bickering. Sorry for all those hoping for girls. Those three are guys, definitely.

She looked excitedly towards the doorway. She wondered who it could be among those three. Whoever it could be, she’s sure that she would have a great time having a class with them.

Though, she didn’t know what will happen to her if Tsubasa was the one entering the room.

“Everyone quiet down!” Their teacher scolded. “Don’t give a bad impression to them. Don’t let them hate you on their very first day.”

“Oi, Sensei, that’s mean!”

“Then calm down,” was her retort. “Now if you all just be peaceful little angels, then maybe I could let them come in.”

“Hai.”

“Good,” she said. Then she turned towards the opened doorway. “You three can all come in now.”

This is it, this is the mo-wait three?

What she saw next made her jaw drop.

Oozora Tsubasa, Misaki Tarou, and Genzo Wakabayashi all walked inside her classroom in a straight line. The school’s uniform of a light blue blazer and black pants fit them perfectly, as if they have been wearing it forever. She just knew many girls have already fallen for them. Hook, line, and sinker, even if they didn’t throw something to fish with.

Dear Lord, save her.

The boys were all in different classes, and no one from her class in Nankatsu Elementary were close to these three as much as the boys were. That meant, she had to take care of them.

She was so into her thoughts she didn’t even notice they stopped and started introducing themselves.

“Oozora Tsubasa. Nice to meet all of you.”

“Misaki Tarou. Please take care of me.”

“Wakabayashi Genzou.”

She continued silently staring at them, praying to whoever was up there that they did not notice her until it was the end of homeroom.

Fate hated her that day.

“Ah,” Misaki-kun exclaimed as he spotted her. “Anego!”

Everyone knew he could only be talking of one person and everyone in class directed their attention on her. Yes, even those three in the front.

“Y-yo, Misaki-kun,” she managed weakly. She could hear Ayame’s snicker all the way from where she is and the urge to gut her cousin in her sleep has never been harder.

“Oh, Nakazawa-san knows you guys?” their teacher said. “That’s great! I leave them in your hands then, okay?”

Well, what else could she do?

“Hai,” she mumbled.

Their teacher clapped her hands together. “Now, then where shall we put all three of you? I know-“

As their teacher decided where those three would sit, Sanae’s eyes met Tsubasa’s. He was looking at her curiously, and she felt her heart skip a beat. It’s their first time seeing each other again, and he must be trying to figure out what’s different with her.

She willed the blush from her face to die down, and hopefully they listened. With all the power she could muster, she gave him a smile and a small wave. He only blinked in return, and she almost thought that she was wrong and he was looking at someone else. But then he smiled, and gave her a slight nod of his head.

After that, the three of them followed the teacher’s orders of where to sit.

She thought that everything would be back to normal now that’s done. Except, almost every single girl in the classroom was looking at her. Some were even whispering to each other. She could only guess who they were talking about.

She laid her face on her desk, ignoring the teacher’s voice.

Gods above, please help her.

 

* * *

 

He was excited for this day. This was his first day after all in Nankatsu High School. It’s his first time attending a Japanese school again after three years. This will all be different for him. He did skip junior high. Not only will this be harder than being in elementary, but it will demand more time for him. He did need to pass with a certain grade in order to continue playing soccer.

But, that’s alright. He’s sure that he could take whatever they throw at him. As long as he had his friends beside him, it’ll be fine.

He was standing outside one of the first year classes. Misaki-kun and Wakabayashi-kun were with him. It was quite a surprise for him to find out all three of them would be in a class together. At least then, they wouldn’t feel any lonely at all.

Though, he wondered if they would have anyone they know in the class.

“Do you think Ishizaki-kun and the others would be in our class?” Misak asked them as they leaned against the wall.

“Hopefully not all of them,” Wakabayashi answered. “I just want a quiet class to be in so that I can study.”

Tsubasa chuckled at his statement. “Come on Wakabayashi-kun,” he said. “It’s not that bad. It could be fun.”

“For you, sure. But leave me out of it.”

He and Misaki only chuckled again at their friend’s honestly.

They heard their teacher call them to come in. They nodded and looked each other.

“This is it guys,” he said. “Let’s go.”

The two nodded and they came in.

They could feel everyone’s eyes on them, but they didn’t mind it. He had a smile on his face feeling the excitement of meeting everyone for the first time. He wondered if any of them like soccer.

The three of them stopped beside the teacher’s desk and faced everyone. He scanned the room to see if he can

“Well, here they are everyone,” their teacher told everyone. “As I said, don’t make them hate you at the very beginning.” Then she turned her direction the three boys. “Now then, would be alright if you three could introduce yourselves?”

“It’ll be our pleasure, sensei,” Tsubasa replied to her, then directed his attention to the class.

“Oozora Tsubasa. Nice to meet all of you.”

“Misaki Tarou. Please take care of me.”

“Wakabayashi Genzou.”

After their introduction, there was a pregnant silence, before everyone broke out in whispers. Well, the girls mostly.

Tsubasa closed his eyes and chuckled. This should be a fun class. Although, Wakabayashi might think otherwise. Well, he couldn’t do anything anymore. This is their class until the year ends.

“Ah,” he heard Misaki exclaim from beside him. “Anego!”

That took his attention. He followed his friend’s line of sight and saw a wide eyed girl staring at them.

“Y-yo Misaki-kun,” she greeted.

Tsubasa tuned out his teacher and unconsciously stared at her curiously.

She looked… different. Not in a bad way of course. He didn’t think the picture the guys showed him was any different than what she looked like right now. Her hair was down a little past her shoulders, her face lost that chubbiness to them, her eyes, still the same round brown eyes that held her whole emotions.

The picture got her features perfectly, but there was something about seeing her face to face he couldn’t put a finger on. He just knew that he couldn’t take his eyes off of her.

He blinked when he noticed the small wave she gave him as she smiled. It took him a while to process what she just did, but when he realized it, he smiled back and gave a small nod.

He turned back his attention to their teacher.

“Now where to put you? I know-“

Being in this class didn’t seem terrible at all.

 

* * *

 

The bell rang for the last time the last time that day. His first official day as a student in Nankatsu High School finally ended, and he couldn’t help but feel relieved. The classes seemed a little bit boring for him, but he had to listen. He promised his mom that he would do his best studying to make up for the last three years he spent abroad. Granted, he received homeschooling from Roberto, but this was different. Besides, if he wanted to play soccer, he had to get good grades.

Speaking of soccer, now he could check out the soccer club since it’s finally after school. Izawa-kun did say they were pretty good, especially the upperclassmen. Though, they never won Nationals before. Nankatsu always seemed to get eliminated in the group stage of Nationals. He, and everyone else of their friends, hope that if they the three of them joined, then they could finally get past the groups.

He quickly gathered but his things, excited to finally be able to play soccer again after a long day of sitting. God, did he need to get out there and start running.

He noticed something from the corner of his eyes, and couldn’t help but smile.

Maybe he could stay in the room a little longer. He did need to say hi to someone.

Originally, he wanted to do it sooner, ever since the he found her that morning. But circumstances prevented that from happening.

Their next classes all had their teachers come in the exactly one after another, leaving them no time to talk at all. Lunch, she was immediately grabbed by a long haired girl out of classroom to eat somewhere else. He, Misaki-kun, and Wakabayashi-kun were dragged by the guys to talk about what they think of the school on their first day. He also found out in that time that Misaki-kun and Wakabayashi-kun already talked her that one day she was giving out cookies, meaning out of the three of them, he was the only one who haven’t uttered a word to her at all. They all started talking again and didn’t notice time to pass by, and soon lunch ended with him not talking at her at all, again.

Now, since school finally ended. Maybe this time, they could talk a little bit.

Before he could even stand up from his chair, her when she was grabbed by the same long haired girl before.

“Come on Sanae!” the girl ordered. ”We’re going to be late.”

“The bell just rang,” She replied. “I’m not even ready yet.”

“I am not going to have Akane-buchou be pissed at me because you were too slow.”

“Wait a second will you? Ayame-, damnit! Ayame!”

The girl then dragged her out of the room, with her following beside and trying to keep up. They passed by Kisugi and Izawa, who they almost hit. The two blinked at each other before shrugging and getting inside their room. Throughout that commotion, Misaki and Wakabayashi walked towards his desk.

“There you guys are,” Izawa exclaimed as they walked to the three of them. “Taki and the others already went ahead. Said they’ll be waiting for us in the club room.”

“What was that?” Wakabayashi asked as they started to leave the room.

“What?” Kisugi asked.

“Anego was dragged by this girl out of the room in a rush,” Misaki explained. “She seemed to be in a real hurry.”

“Oh, Kiseki?” Izawa said, “She probably didn’t to anger Izuzaki-senpai at her. They probably have a hard practice today.”

“Izuzaki-senpai?”

“Their captain,” Kisugi answered as they got closer to the club room. “She’s really tough on them, but I guess it’ll pay in the end.”

“You know,” Wakabayashi said, “We never did know what club Anego joined.”

Izawa and Kisugi both looked at each other, but then they grinned mischievously.

“Now that’s a secret,” Izawa replied.

“You guys will know soon, don’t worry,” Kisugi added as he opened the door to the clubroom, ready to play some soccer.

 

* * *

 

She sighed as she hoisted her duffel bag on her shoulder. Her muscles ache all over and she was too tired. Akane-buchou was not joking when she said that they be prepared for practice. All those drills and a match soon after left her crying for her body. Sometimes, that woman could be a slave driver.

She guessed that their captain did have the right idea. The girls’ high school team weren’t known in the competitive circle. The other teams only started to acknowledge them when they’ve beaten their opponent in their first exhibition match. Some of the schools probably thought it was a fluke, they weren’t supposed to be a challenging team. But, was it really a joke of they won three to zero?

That happened in their junior high as well. Only when Akane-buchou managed to gather the best players did Nankatsu have a chance at winning matches. Soon after that, they’ve won their first National Tournament.

It seemed like it was going to happen again this year. Akane-buchou wanted to make Nankatsu’s name known around the Girls’ Soccer circle as a fierce adversary, a team nobody wanted to take lightly ever again. So far it’s working.

“Oi, Sanae,” Ayame’s voice drifted to her ears. She was already outside, waiting for her to come out. “Are you ready? I want to go home soon!”

“Just a sec!” she said as she fixed her shoes and went towards the door. She did want to leave as well. She couldn’t wait to get a nice soak for her tired muscles.

“That took more a second!” Ayame whined as she went of their club room. “You were the last one out?”

“I was making sure that I didn’t leave anything,” she replied. “Sheesh, calm down.”

“I can’t calm down when I’m hungry.”

She sighed in defeat. Her cousin loved food too much. She could eat all the leftover cake in the shop without even batting an eyelash. Sometimes, she’s worried over her appetite.

“You don’t have to wait for me you know,” she said as they walked towards the gate. Their senpai-tachi already left before them, probably couldn’t wait to go home as much as they were. “You could have gone with the senpai-tachi.”

“I can’t leave my best friend, can I?” Ayame asked cheekily. “Besides, you can’t get rid of me that easily.”

She chuckled and bumped her hips against Ayame. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

“Oi, Anego! Ayame-chan!”

They looked forward to see the boys waiting for them at the gate. It seemed like practice ended a little early for them. All of them were together as always. Misaki and Wakabayashi were there as well. If they were there, then that meant-

Her eyes found him, casually leaning against the wall listening to Kisugi about something. Sensing that someone was looking at him, he raised his head to her direction and his eyes met hers.

Her heart skipped a beat.

He gave her a smile, and her lips without her knowing made itself into a grin.

“You guys are late today,” Ishizaki remarked as they reached them. “Something big coming up soon?”

“Spring Prefectural Tournament,” Ayame grumbled. “Akane-buchou wants us to take it home this year. She’s being a slave driver again.”

“I’m sure it’ll pay off in the end,” Morisaki comforted.

“Anyway we want to introduce you to someone,” Izawa said, “Er, some people I mean.”

“I know them,” she replied. They all gave her shocked looks and she could only roll her eyes. “They’re in my class remember,” she pointed out. “Besides, it’s not like you guys ever shut up about them. Sometimes I don’t know which fan club you guys are. Sanae’s or theirs.”

“We’re not a fan club,” they all denied at once. “We’re Anego’s number one support group!

Ayame snorted, “My point exactly.” She pushed passed them and went towards the three who were only watching the scene unfold.

“Yo,” she greeted them. “I’m Kiseki Ayame from your class and also her,” she pointed to Sanae, “cousin. Nice to meet you three.”

They all stared at her incredulously, but Misaki recovered first.

“Nice to meet you too Kiseki-san,” he replied. “I’m Misaki Tarou. Nice to meet you too.”

“Oozora Tsubasa. Hello.”

“Wakabayashi Genzou. Hi.”

“You guys play soccer too, right?” she asked. They all nodded and Ayame smirked. “I look forward to seeing you guys on the field.” Then she turned to face the other boys. “Make sure they get into the starting team for the girls versus boys game, alright?”

“I don’t think we have to make sure. I think they’ll be _on_ the starting team by that time.”

“They better be,” she said as they all started to walk out of the school. They all started their conversations as they walked home, their routine returning back to normal.

Sanae set herself to stay in the back, content to watch and listen to them as they chatted and bicker amongst each other. Misaki-kun and Wakabayashi-kun seemed to fit in quite perfectly, as if they were always part of the group. It was amazing watching them

“Hey.”

She was snapped out of her thoughts by a voice she knew she could never forget. She turned her head to the side and felt her heart skip another beat. She could feel her heart start to beat fast and her stomach turn into butterflies.

She gulped and tried to smile. “Hi.”

“We finally get to talk to each other,” he said.

“Yeah,” she agreed lamely. Wow, great conversation skills Sanae. You should get a talk show.

There was a moment of silence between them. Both could feel the awkwardness in the air, and she knew that he was trying to find a way to break it just as much as she could.                                                                                    

“So,” he started, “How have you been?”

“Oh you know,” she said, “I’ve been busy. With school and clubs and all that. How about you? How was Brazil?”

“Brazil was amazing!” he told her. “There were many amazing soccer players in there that I had the honor to play with.”

She chuckled as she listened to him talk about his experiences in Brazil. It was nice listen to him again. She remembered how she could listen to him talk about his dream for a long time, feeling the excitement he felt. Now, she could feel the happiness radiating from him.

“That’s awesome to hear,” she said.

“Thanks,” he replied then he took a glance on her duffel bag. “I don’t mean to be rude, but can I ask about that bag? Kiseki-san also had a bag like that.”

“Oh you’re fine,” she said as she showed the duffel bag. “This? I have all my stuff here for my club.”

“Oh that reminds me,” he exclaimed. “The guys told me that you joined a different club. They never told me anything through our letters and email.”

Because she didn’t want them to tell him.

“It’s not exactly a different club,” she started sheepishly. “I just joined the girls’ soccer club, is all.”

A look of surprise crossed his face. “The girls’ soccer club? Really? That’s great!” he exclaimed. “I didn’t know you played soccer.”

She chuckled at his enthusiastic answer. She was expecting that he wouldn’t like it at all, but it’s Tsubasa and whenever it was soccer, well, nothing could be wrong if its soccer.

“I’ve always loved soccer,” she answered. “I just took a break and picked it up after…” she trailed off and licked her lips, “after you left.”

“Oh…” there was another moment of silence between them. His leaving was a huge deal for her, and thankfully he didn’t ask more about it.”

“So what position do you play?” he asked to break the silence.

She smiled, “I usually play midfield.”

“Really? That’s awesome! What number?”

She chuckled again. This will surprise him even more.

“Number 10,” she answered.

“Oh wow,” he exclaimed. “You must be really good then.”

“Not really,” she denied bashfully. “I just like to score some goals. It’s mostly the whole team who makes us win most of our matches.”

“I’m sure you scored the winning goals then,” he retorted. “Hey we should play a game sometimes.”

“I don’t think I can hold my own against you,” she answered. “You have more experience than I do.”

“Hey, you never know,” he chuckled.

“I guess,” she said as she looked up. “Oh,” she exclaimed. “I didn’t notice we’re already at your house.”

She was so into their conversation she didn’t even notice they already separated from the other boys. Ayame probably already reached the shop by now. Oh gosh this was so embarrassing. She didn’t mean to take up all his time talking to him.

“Are we really?” he asked. “That was fast. I guess times goes by quickly if you were talking to someone you haven’t talked to in a while.”

She chuckled and smiled. “I guess you’re right,” she agreed. “I better be going then. I still have some homework to do.”

“Are you sure you can go home alone?” he asked concerned.

“Don’t worry Tsubasa-kun,” she replied. “I just have to take a right here and walk a few more feet from here and I’ll be home.”

“If you say so,” he said. “Be careful though.”

She laughed, “I’ll be fine. So I’ll see you tomorrow?”

He nodded with a smile. “Yeah!”

“Ja ne!”

She started to walk away from him as she waved. When she turned away from him, she couldn’t help the smile from forming on her lips.

She finally got to talk to him, and for some reason, felt happy. It didn’t end in a disaster and it wasn’t as awkward as she thought it would be. Granted there were few moments of silence, but there weren’t that many.

It was nice, and maybe just maybe, she’ll keep her heart just for him a little while longer.

End Chapter


	9. Her Voice

She could not believe how fast she started to be familiar with him again. Just after their talk from three days ago, it seemed like he never left at all. They could talk without filling in the silence again. She could look directly into him without breaking into a red tomato, she could laugh with normally, as if he was there for all the timed he missed.

But her heart never failed to beat fast whenever he smiled at her.

They were all walking back home again, their usual chatter and antics were present yet again. But, there was something that Ayame said that caught her attention.

“So, when are your try-outs for regulars,” she asked Misaki, who she was walking alongside with.

“Ah, I’m surprised you know about that Kiseki-san?” he replied.

“Just call me Ayame,” she reminded. “I’m half American. Calling me by last name feels weird. It’s like you’re asking for a miracle but got me instead. Anyway, if you’re cousin’s with the girl who made it a living to take care of ‘her boys’, you tend to know these kinds of things.”

“’Her boys?’” Misaki voiced out.

Ayame rolled her eyes. “These bunch of idiots,” she pointed to the said bunch.

“We’re not idiots!” They all denied.

“Right,” Ayame snorted, “You’re Sanae’s idiots.”

“Ayame!” she hissed at her cousin.

“What?” Ayame retorted. “It’s not like they were denying it. Besides, you’re the one who made the charm with ‘Anego’s Boys’ written on it.”

“Shut up!” she could only exclaim in frustration. She was hoping that no one brought that up. Now who knows what they would be thinking of her now.

“Why don’t we have one?” Wakabayashi asked as Izawa showed his charm to him. “Aren’t we technically part of ‘your boys’ too?” He turned to her with a smirk.

“I was wondering about that myself,” Misaki added. He was looking at the one Morisaki was showing him. “I want one. Then, if I’m wondering why I can’t hear your voice cheering for us, then I just have to find this and remember that wherever you are, you’re still supporting us.”

That made her fluster and look down to hide her face. “It’s just a charm,” she mumbled.

“Yeah, but having your support means a lot us,” Tsubasa said to her. “It feels different when you’re not cheering for us.”

She looked up to him slowly, and when she saw that smile again, her heart started to beat fast again. Would this ever stop?

“Thanks, I guess,” she answered as she looked away from him with a small smile. “I- I’ll get to your charms soon. It’s easy to make anyway.”

“Awesome! Thanks.”

She only nodded her head as they all continued to walk. Ayame, being the nosy person that she is, continued to pester Misaki about the try-out match for them.

“It’s supposed to be tomorrow,” he answered. “But, Takano-buchou said he wanted to do something different instead of just playing with the non-regular upperclassmen. I think he’s adding some of the second year regulars in the team against ours.”

Takano-senpai’s adding in the second year regulars? Oh dear.

“Wow,” Ayame breathed out. “If he’s adding in those people, then he has high hopes for you guys.”

“Of course, buchou would have high hopes for them!” Ishizaki exclaimed. “We’ve been telling him about them forever and he’s excited to see them out on the field.”

“We’re not that great,” Misaki humbly denied. “We still have lots to learn.”

“No, you guys have a lot of potential already,” Ayame countered. “Akane-buchou and Takano-senpai have the same way of picking out regulars. They weed out the people who they think would bring the team down and replace them with those who can bring victory to the team. Sanae and I have been there. Even those three,” she pointed to the Shuutetsu trio, who nodded in agreement, “were put on the same thing as you guys are going to be.”

“But, isn’t that kind of horrible?”

“All teams want to win,” Ayame retorted, “And some people will do whatever it takes to obtain that.”

Wakabayashi snorted. “Whatever,” he said nonchalantly. “I know I’ll do my very best. I want to against Hyuuga again, and no upperclassmen will get in my way.”

That caused Ayame to smile and punch Wakabayashi in the arm, who cried out in pain.

“That’s the spirit,” she said. “Then, I could see if the boys aren’t exaggerating how great you guys are on field.”

“Oh, you’ll be surprised.”

“I’d better be.”

All the others started to laugh and joke around again. She smiled for a few for moments, before a frown took its place.

She was worried for their game tomorrow. Oh, she knew that they could defeat the upperclassmen in the position as regulars. It’s just that, those second years were terrible. Unlike their counterparts in the girls’ team, who could accept defeat in complete acceptance, those boys couldn’t. She could never trust in them. Not when they messed with Taki’s shoes a month ago to sabotage his chances of being a regular. She almost barged in there and punch those assholes’ faces herself if it wasn’t for Akane-buchou stopping her, telling her that it wasn’t her business. She obeyed begrudgingly.

They were lucky that the three were picked as regulars, because if they didn’t she would really talk to Takano-senpai about this and they could kiss their soccer dreams goodbye because she would break all their legs into pieces, along with their family jewels.

No one messes with her boys, and if they did, then welcome to hell.

She couldn’t help but worry about those three, because she knew that whatever those unfair upperclassmen do to those three, she’ll go on a rampage.

Hopefully, these three boys could take care of themselves.

 

* * *

 

She kept on missing again, which sucks because everyone knew she was worried about something again. It would have been fine if she was the only one messing up, but for some reason it was affecting everyone. It’s like her nerves wanted other people’s nerves to be as tensed as they were.

“Mou, Sanae-chan, you need to calm down,” Chieko-senpai complained. “You’re messing up my vibe here!”

“Ehehe,” she chuckled nervously, “Sorry, senpai. I’m trying but some reason I just can’t.”

“What’s gotten into anyway,” Rinko-senpai asked as she walked towards her.

She heard Ayame snicker from beside her. “She’s worried about her boys,” her cousin told them. “The three new ones have their regular try-outs today and she’s getting anxious about it.”

“Ayame!” she growled. “Shut up!”

“Is that so?” Akane-buchou asked as she finally got there.

She bit down on her bottom lip and nodded slowly. “I’m just worried that some of the upperclassmen would the same thing they did to Taki-kun.”

”Especially if Tsubasa-kun got hurt.”

She turned back to her cousin with a glare. “One more word Ayame and I’ll change the Wi-Fi password.”

“Shutting up now.”

“Aww,” Chieko-senpai gave her a hug and stroked her head in a way a mother does to a child. “Shhh, poor baby. Don’t worry I’m sure your boys will be okay.”

“Sanae-chan did say that they’re great soccer players, right?” Shiori asked her.

She nodded while biting her lower lip again. “Yeah, b-but still.”

Akane-buchou gave out a sigh that caught their attention.

“Fine,” she said, a little annoyed. “I’ll end practice early today so you can watch them.”

She felt her whole mood brighten.

“But that’s only for today,” her captain added. “There will be no next time.”

She gave a huge smile to Akane and bowed. “Hai! I promise this will be the last time. Thank you!”

She stood up and ran towards the club room, ignoring the chuckles and laughs that they gave out. She needed to get to the boys’ soccer field as fast as she could. The game should still have at least 15 minutes left in the second half. She could make it.

She only got her bag and put on her sweatshirt before she ran straight to the other field. When she got there, she looked at the scoreboard first. It read: 1-1. Damnit, what are those three doing? They should have at least three goals by now. The upperclassmen they were against weren’t even that great. Why are they having such a hard time against them?

She turned towards the boys and saw that Misaki-kun was limping, probably a sprained ankle. Wakabayashi-kun’s one hand was missing a glove and bleeding really bad. Tsubasa didn’t seem like hurt at all, but he was panting really hard. Their teammates seemed to have lost all hope in winning.

She gritted her team, and without her noticing, she opened her mouth and screamed.

“Come on guys, I know you can do it!”

 

* * *

 

He wiped the sweat off his forehead his head. These upperclassmen were tough. Well, not really tough. They just liked to play dirty. From the beginning of the match, no, even before that, he knew they had something planned. The other guys told him that these upperclassmen were ruthless, even messing with Taki’s cleats to mess him up.

He was prepared for that. He wasn’t even surprised when he found his shoes missing and had to borrow Ishizaki’s. It was a little loose, but he could work with it.

He thought that was the end of it, but once the match started, they attacked again.

Five minutes into the game, they tackled Misaki that had him roll his ankle and sprain it. They all asked if he was alright, and him being Misaki, said that he was fine. He could still play. As his teammate, he wanted him to sit this game down, but one look from his friend told him that Misaki would see his game till the end. He honored that decision and let him continue. They scored the first goal of the match.

The upperclassmen didn’t seem to like that and attacked fiercer than before. At the beginning of the second half, when the other team was trying a goal, Wakabayashi almost had the ball as he dived for it, but they kicked still it. That earned Wakabayashi a missing glove and a bleeding hand. Being the stubborn guy that he is, he didn’t even want bandages for his hand and instead glared at the second year who kicked it, who only smirked in return.

Tsubasa turned towards their captain, who only watched silently as the game continues on. They met eyes and soon he turned around ready to play again. Fine. If he’s not going to do anything about it, then so be it. They’ll win this game for sure.

So, here he was now, panting as he stood to watch the other team was complaining about again. Something about how one of his teammates, another first year, apparently hurt him while tackling.

They were probably trying to waste time. There was only 15 minutes left in the game. Usually, he would think that that would be a lot of time left, but seeing that both Wakabayashi and Misaki were injured, and his other teammates have lost their hope already. Ishizaki and others weren’t in his team, probably a tactic made by Takano-buchou so they would be bound. His shoes were also starting to bother his, probably because he wasn’t used to them.

He gritted his teeth. How was going to get over this obstacle?

“What’s wrong first year?” a second year, one of the regulars, provoked. “I thought you were supposed to be a soccer genius?”

The other upperclassmen snickered along with him.

Misaki, who he didn’t even notice walk towards him, laid a hand on his shoulder.

“Don’t mind him Tsubasa-kun,” he said.

He only nodded silently.

“If I just didn’t injure my ankle,” Misaki started. “Maybe I could have done more.”

He shook his head. “You’ve already done more than you think. Playing with an injury is really hard. Besides, it’s not your fault.”

“But, still,” Misaki said as he looked towards the second years. “What are we going to do with them?”

As they both contemplated on how they’re going to figure this out, they heard a voice, specifically a voice they thought they wouldn’t hear today.

 _Her voice_.

“Come on guys, I know you can do it!”

They turned towards the side and saw _her_. Her hair was a mess, and her sweatshirt looked like it was hastily put on. Her chest heaved up and down, a sign that she must have ran to get there as fast as she could.

She was cheering for them.

He and Misaki shared a smile.

“You heard the lady!” Wakabayashi screamed at them. “Don’t let her down now!”

Misaki chuckled from beside him. “So, Anego’s here,” he remarked. “It’d be embarrassing if the first game she watched of us playing and we lost.”

“We can’t have that now can’t we?” He replied.

He offered his fist to Misaki. “Let’s do this,” he said.

Misaki’s fist met his. “Let’s do it.”

They got into position, and when the whistle ran, he quickly stole the ball under their opponent’s feet and ran past every one of them. Misaki ran alongside him, waiting until he passed the ball to him. Wakabayashi was there, still guarding the goal and shouting encouragements.

Someone tried to tackle the ball away from him, but he passed it quickly to Misaki. They continued to pass it between them until they reach the opponent’s goal. He prepared to shoot a goal, when he heard someone.

“Don’t let him get a point!” one of the upperclassmen screamed at their goalie, who was also one of the regulars. The goalie jumped to stop his kick, but he passed it to Misaki in the last minute, who dived and scored them another goal.

They’re spirited were all renewed when the whistle resounded for call their goal. Their teammates huddled around him and Misaki as they all celebrated their goal.

The upperclassmen could only look in shock and fear, knowing that they were going to be decimated by them in the last minutes of the game.

He turned towards where she was, happy to see the huge smile on her face. If it wasn’t for her, he didn’t know what they would have done. It truly was different without hearing her voice cheering for them.

In the last ten minutes of the game, they continued to score goal after goal.

The match ended with them winning 4-1.

                End chapter       


	10. Make it Count

They sat in the Oozora’s living room, celebrating. The three boys got in as regulars and would be playing as starters in their next game. Seeing that this was amazing news, they all decided to go to the Oozora household to celebrate their hearts out.

She and Ayame were invited to go with them. She was about to decline, but Ayame was faster than her and agreed wholeheartedly.

_“But we wouldn’t want to impose,” she tried to reason out._

_“Don’t worry,” Tsubasa comforted her. ”Besides, as they say, the more the merrier!”_

_“And if we didn’t hear you back then,” Misaki added. “I don’t think we could have won.”_

_They all laughed as she blushed another shade of red and looked down. These boys always wanted to see her flustered._

So here they were now, all sitting on the floor watching a current game of soccer of Shimizu S-Pulse* against the Yokohama Marinos* on TV. There were lots of food all around them, mostly junk food.

The celebrating quickly ended in favor of the match. The boys were all engrossed on the match, being huge fans of S-Pulse. Ayame, just to spite them, was cheering for Yokohama even if she was a little bit of a fan of S-Pulse herself. Her cousin has the weirdest humor she ever knew.

She was sitting by the very back of the group, not really wanting to add to the noise they were already making.

She changed back into her uniform. She didn’t really feel comfortable wearing her jersey outside of a match. She just didn’t get a chance to change because she was in a hurry to watch their game anyway.

Watching him score the last goal for the team was nostalgic. It reminded her of their games back when they were young. He always did manage to win the most impossible games. Cheering for them felt amazing as well. She could feel the rush in her bones as she screamed her hearts out for him.

She missed it.

“Anee-chan!” she heard Daichi sing as he immediately gave her a hug. This kid would always latch her the moment he saw her. She was surprised he only did that right now. Well, she guessed the big hug he gave her when they arrived. It was more amusing to see him latch on Tsubasa instead. Plus, it was so cute seeing them interact.

“Hey, there squirt,” she said as she returned the hug. “Finally missed me? I thought you would have replaced me with your brother,” she teased as she bopped his nose.

“No!” he said. “Anee-chan is Anee-chan, and Onii-chan is Onii-chan! Onii-chan can never replace Anee-chan!”

“Ouch, Daichi. That hurt Onii-chan.”

They looked up to see Tsubasa beside them, who immediately took a seat beside her. He had a teasing grin on his face, but of course Daichi didn’t know about that.

She could feel her heart beat fast again, and a blush to form on her face, but she willed them to calm down.

“Oh, u-um,” Daichi frantically stuttered. “I-I mean, Anee-chan is, Onii-chan is-“

Tsubasa then laughed and ruffled Daichi’s hair. “I’m just teasing you, little man,” he said. “I know what you mean. Sanae-chan is pretty irreplaceable.

Oh, be still her beating heart. She looked to see if anyone heard that, and so far, it seemed like every one was still watching the watch. Thank goodness. She was dealing with all their teasing.

“Mou, Onii-chan is so mean!” Daichi exclaimed as he hugged Sanae again and buried his face on her shoulder. “Anee-chan is so much nicer.”

They both chuckled as she stroked the boy’s hair. “There, there Daichi-kun,” she comforted. “Your nii-chan just wanted to have some fun. Don’t worry about it. He didn’t mean it.”

Daichi separated from her and looked up. “Really?” he asked with huge eyes.

“Really,” she confirmed. “Now why don’t you give your nii-chan a hug?”

“Okay!” the boy went to his brother and gave him a huge hug. Tsubasa squeezed him tight and blew a raspberry against Daichi’s cheek. The boy gave a delighted cry of “Onii-chan!” as he tried to separate himself from his brother.

She chuckled as she watched the two brothers interact. It seems so nice to have a little sibling. Since she was an only child, and Ayame was too old for those kinds of things, Daichi was the little brother she always wanted.

Daichi finally got out of his brother’s clutches and proceeded to run away from him, something about him being thirsty.

“You guys have such a cute relationship,” she said to Tsubasa as they watch Daichi run out of the roof. “You’re a good brother.”

“You and Daichi have a pretty great relationship as well,” he replied. “He did say you taught him soccer more than the guys did.”

“I figured that would be the best thing to do to past time while I looked after him, considering who his brother is,” she joked.

They both shared a laugh from it before Daichi returned with his sippy cup and proceeded to sit directly on her lap, already watching the game as well.

“So,” he started. “Not going to join in cheering? I would have thought you would be louder than all of them combined.

She laughed and lightly punched him in the arm. “I resent that,” she complained. “But really. I don’t really like S-Pulse that much. I’m more of an Iwata* fan.”

“Go blue?” Tsubasa asked cheekily?

She chuckled again and nodded, “Go blue.”

“So when am I going to get my match?” Tsubasa inquired as he took a piece of potato chip from one of the bags on the floor. “I did get onto the team now. I hope that’s good enough.”

She tilted her head and pretended to think. “Hmmm,” she hummed. “Maybe in a few more weeks.”

“Weeks?” He exclaimed in mock dramatics. “But that’s so long. Why in a few more weeks?”

She giggled and said, “It’s not that long. The girls versus boys match will probably come a few days before the tournaments start in June.”

“Girls versus boys?”

She nodded as wrapped her arms around Daichi. “As the name suggest, it’s a game between the girls’ team and boys’ team. We had one last year when we were in Junior High. One of my friends in the same year as us told it to our senpai-tachi in the team and apparently they liked the idea and wants to make it a yearly thing.”

“That’s cool,” Tsubasa answered as the guys roared when S-Pulse scored a goal. “So who won the match last year?”

“It was a tie,” she answered. “And we were too lazy to do a penalty shootout, so we left it at that.”

“But Anee-chan could have won that game easily, ne?” Daichi interrupted.

“Shush, Daichi,” She said. “I couldn’t have won that easily. Ayame was missing, remember? We couldn’t exactly win with a missing person.”

“But that’s what Mamoru-nii-chan told me,” Daichi argued as he looked up from his seat on her lap. “Even without Aya-nee-chan, your team was good enough without her.”

“Well, then Mamoru-nii-chan is a liar, therefore someone you can’t trust,” she declared.

“Eh?”

Tsubasa chuckled as he watched those two interact. It was fun to see their banters and chats. They were so natural together, you couldn’t take your eyes off of them. It’s like when you think of a perfect family, they were the first one to pop into your mind. At least, to him anyway.

Sanae leaned down towards Daichi as she closed her eyes and rubbed their noses together.

“I’m just joking, squirt,” she laughed as she separated from him. “You can seriously trust your Mamoru-nii-chan.”

“You sure?”

“Yes, I am very much sure. Your Anee-chan just likes to pick on all of your nii-chan,” she grinned.

“Okay!” then the child went back to drinking his sippy cup.

“Wasn’t that kind of mean?” Tsubasa asked. “Izawa-kun didn’t even know about that happening.”

She chuckled again. “Maybe,” she said, “But it’s fun to pick on them because they tend to get worked up about everything. I usually do it with Ayame most of the time. Why do you think she’s cheering for Yokohama?”

They laughed again together. Then a comfortable silence befall on them. They only watched as their friends cheered on their team of choosing.

“Man, I missed a lot didn’t I?” he said unexpectedly. She turned to him with a confused expression, to which he only chuckled at when he saw it.

“I mean this,” he gestured around the room. “I missed Daichi being born, being part of my friends’ games, your first game.”

“Well, you missed them for a reason,” she tried to counter. “And we don’t want you to miss an opportunity for you to achieve your dream. We know how much it’s important for you.”

“But still, these things are important as well,” he argued. “And I wasn’t there to see it happen.”

She remained silent for a while. She knew that she could never change his mind about this. Once he thought of it, he never changed.

“If you’re really guilty of missing all these events,” she started. “Then you have three years to make it up.” Then she patted his arm and gave an encouraging smile.

“Make it count.”

Tsubasa widened his eyes, but that didn’t last long as he returned her smile and nodded.

“I will.”

Her phone beeped to tell her she had a message and she immediately grabbed it. It might be her mom, but only chuckled when she saw who it was.

“Who was it?” he asked curiously.

“Just Yayoi-chan,” she replied.

“Yayoi? I thought you guys didn’t get along with each other,” he remarked.

She rolled her eyes. That was because she chose not to get along with the girl because she was jealous of their relationship. Not that she would tell him that.

“That was then,” she answered. “Now, we’re great friends.”

“So what did she want?” he said as he took a swig from a can of soda.

“I told her about you guys trying out for the regular spots,” she told him. “Now she wants updates.”

He laughed, “Well, tell her that we got it easily.”

Then she snorted. “Right, because for the most part of the game the score was 1-1,” she teased.

“Hey, we scored three more times by the last ten minutes,” he defended.

“Which you should have gotten in the first half,” she countered. “If that was my team, we would have scored eight goals by that time.”

“Oh yeah, wait until I play against you guys. Then you’ll be eating your words,” he said hotly.

She smirked towards him. “Was that a challenge, Tsubasa-kun?”

He returned her smirked with one his own. “So what if it was?” he drawled.

There was a sudden spark in her eye and Tsubasa couldn’t help but like it.

“Bring it, Tsubasa-kun.”

They stared at each other before Ayame’s voice destroyed it.

“Will you two quit flirting?” she asked, irritated. “I’m trying to watch here.”

She immediately turned away from him as she felt her face flush. Goddamnit Ayame, really?

“We were not flirting,” she denied vehemently. “We were only talking.”

“Uh huh. And S-Pulse isn’t sucking so badly right now.”

“They do not suck!” One of the boys denied.

“Take that back!”

“Oh yeah? Make me!”

“Why you-“

She sighed as her cousin got into another scuffle with the boys. Her cousin is too much of a sadist sometimes.

She gave a furtive glance to the boy beside him, who didn’t seem to mind what her cousin said. He was laughing at the guys as the match on TV continued to prove Ayame’s statement to be true.

She was getting excited when he said that he was challenging her. She was not going to deny it, but she thought of going against him before. Back when she organized the first girls versus boys match, she had a thought that if he was there, he would have been captain and they would have gone head to head. The same position, the same numbers, the same everything.

It would have been a great match.

But, now he’s here and he said he’d make up everything he missed, the year’s girls versus boys being one of them. Her hopes to play against him will finally come through, and judging from the game she watched this afternoon, he was strong.

Anyone would be excited to play as his opponent.

So, she took a discreet picture of him with her phone and sent it to not only Yayoi, but to the soccer players she knew the number of with the caption:

_Guess who is back in the game?_

End chapter


	11. He Was There

She leaned on her knees for support. She was breathing hard, her lungs trying to grab all the air it could get. Her heart was beating fast, trying to supply every inch of her body with the oxygen it needed badly. She could feel the ache in her muscles starting to make themselves known to her, but she ignored it. She swiped the sweat off her forehead and proceeded to run after her opponent who has the ball.

They got into the finals of the Prefectural Tournament easily. Only when they made it into the last match of the tournament did they have a hard time winning. Of course it was no surprise for them, their opponent is Shikogo High. They were last year's champion and was the one to represent Shizuoka in the Nationals.

Their school surprised everyone by getting this far. Nankatsu High wasn't exactly known to have strong members in their team. She guessed they forgot about what happened when she was in junior high since their members were almost same ones that were playing right now for Nankatsu Junior High. Well, high school was different from junior high. Besides, barely any people cared enough for girls' soccer.

The experts all expected Origaoka Academy to reach the finals and duke it out with Shikogo High again, like the years before. But Nankatsu easily defeated Origaoka in the semifinals with a score of 3-1. Who knew that they could go that far right?

They were expected to lose before Shikogo, though her team expected to go to Nationals, no matter the cost.

She looked towards the scoreboard and saw that they were still in a stalemate of 0-0. The 40 minutes of the second half were almost over, and neither team have scored. She knew everyone in the field was getting frustrated, her being one of them.

She managed to tackle the ball from her opponent's feet and had Ayame catch it. They all turned to the other direction as her cousin dribbled the ball all the way to Shikogo's side of the field. She was stopped halfway through when one of their midfielders blocked her. Ayame looked around to see if she, or anyone for that matter, was free, but all they were all marked. Shikogo must have done their research. Throughout the whole match, almost every one of them had someone tailing them.

 _Damnit,_ she swore to herself. They've been practicing for this game, hoping to get into Nationals. Shikogo was not getting in their way.

With a burst of determination, she broke away from her opponent.

"Ayame!" she screamed towards her cousin. She barely even heard the cry of distress coming from the other team.

Her cousin heard her and quickly passed the ball to her. She caught it easily and continued their attack on Shikogo. She took note of Ayame, and their forwards following after her. They managed to take advantage of Shikogo's surprise when she escaped and broke away from those marking them as well.

Good, time to start their counterattack.

"Shiori!" she exclaimed as she kicked it towards her teammate, who managed to jump and catch it with her chest. She dribbled the ball for a few feet, but she saw the incoming defender and kicked it backwards towards Rinko-senpai. She had the ball for a few moments before kicking it towards Chieko-senpai.

Chieko then dribbled the ball towards the penalty area and ready to score a goal, but another defender blocked her.

"Sanae-chan!" Chieko-senpai shouted towards her.

"Got it!" she answered back as she dived and hit the ball with a header towards the goal. The other team scrambled to block it, but they couldn't.

They were about to celebrate, but the other team's goalkeeper managed to save it in the nick of time.

The whistle blew to signify the end of the second half.

"Damnit!" Ayame exclaimed as Shiori helped her up from the ground. "I thought we had it."

"Me too," Chieko-senpai agreed as they started their walk back towards their bench area. They did have a 10 minute break before the extra time.

"Don't worry everyone," Junko-senpai comforted. "We still have the overtime to crush them."

"R-right."

They could only chuckle nervously as they agreed with their teammate.

"Oh yes, crush them indeed," Ayame voiced out as she snickered in a very frightening manner beside Shiori. The girl only stepped closer to Sanae, who could only pat Shiori in comfort. Her cousin did seem to have these tendencies.

"Okay everyone," Akane-buchou started as they arrived and sat on the benches to drink from their water bottles and rest their body. "We have 20 minutes to turn this game around. I know that Shikogo is a huge pain in our asses-"

"Hear, hear."

"Understatement of the year."

"I'll crush them."

"-but I also know that we can defeat them," their captain finished. "So go and rest. You have about eight minutes before extra time starts."

She was about to drink from her bottle again when she heard someone call her.

"Anee-chan!"

She turned backwards to looked up towards the stands and saw Daichi waving at her. Her boys were behind him, wearing their "Anego's Boys" shirts (Oh my god, when are they going to stop wearing that shirt. It's totally embarrassing!) and holding the "Go Nankatsu Ladies!" banner they all made. She had to stop herself from snorting when she saw Misaki-kun and Wakabayashi-kun to wear the shirt. How in the world did they manage to force SGGK Wakabayashi to wear that?

But, her eyes widened when she saw _him_ of all people to have the shirt on.

He was there. He was there to watch them, to watch her.

Holy shit.

"Oh hey, your fanclub's here, Sanae-chan!" Chieko-senpai pointed out as she looked up as well. "And it seemed like they added new members. Dang, they look cute too. Why do you always get the cute guys?"

"They're not my fanclub!" She denied vehemently, a blush gracing her cheeks.

"Oh, I'm sorry. You're harem then?"

That made her blush harder. "They're not my harem either! Definitely not!"

Chieko-senpai laughed as she patted her shoulder. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding. Geez, Sanae-chan."

"Really, senpai," she complained.

"Ah! It's Sanae's fanclub!" Ayame exclaimed as everyone finally noticed the boys.

"Ayame, shut up!"

They all laughed at her frustrated shout towards her cousin, who only smirked at her direction. They always had fun teasing her and it's not fair! She couldn't help her boys wanted to come to their games.

"So how long have you guys been here?" Ayame asked as they (mostly Sanae) calmed down.

"We managed to get in here right before the second half started," Izawa-kun answered. "We wanted to get here in the middle of half time but Ishizaki here, woke up late and we had to wait for him."

"Hey!"

"It's true, so don't make any excuses."

They all laughed again and Ishizaki tried to find someone so they picked on instead. Unfortunately, he thought it was a great idea that it should be her.

"Oi, Anego," he started. "What's going on? I would have thought you guys already defeated them."

"They were last year's champions," she explained in a calm manner, as if teaching s little kid. "Of course we would have a hard time winning. I doubt you have a chance against them. You can't even defeat me."

"Ooh. Burn."

"Another point to Anego."

"Anego: 103. Ishizaki: 0."

They all started to snicker and chuckle again, but they were interrupted by the referees calling them back to the field. Before she turned around, her eyes caught Tsubasa's. He nodded in greeting and mouthed to words to her.

_Good luck._

She smiled brightly and nodded. Her energy renewed and her determination stronger than ever.

She will definitely win this match.

She ran towards the field, right beside Ayame. They were doing the kickoff this time. She made sure that her ponytail was still secure and prepared herself.

"So," Ayame started. "Ready to win this? We can't have you losing in front of your crush now, can we?"

She gave a glare to her cousin, but gave it up. "Yeah," she nodded.

Ayame offered her hand to her cousin. "Let's do this," she grinned.

Sanae grinned and smacked Ayame's hand for a high five. "Let's do it."

The whistle rang and they took off.

* * *

His eyes followed the number 10 jersey. _Her jersey._ She dribbled the ball expertly as she traded it with number 11, her cousin's jersey, across the field. Overtime just started and they were already on the attack. The other team didn't stand a chance to gain the ball from them. She flew past her all her opponents that tried to block her and those marking could barely keep up with her.

She made another pass as they block her, and the other team thought it would be towards Ayame again, but they were wrong. She passed it to the unmarked Junko, who ran past everyone. Sanae took advantage of their shock and ran passed the two who blocked her.

By that point, Junko was surrounded but, as if sensing that she free, made a backwards pass to Sanae who caught it easily and started towards the goal. When she was in the penalty area, she prepared to shoot. She made a feint towards the right, anticipating that the goalkeeper would jump towards that direction. She changed her foot in the last minute and kicked to the left. The goalie was too late to save it.

The whistle sounded to signify the goal.

He couldn't help the grin from making its way to his face.

She was amazing.

He never thought that she of all people would be into soccer. He remembered how she used to stutter around when explaining the mechanics of the game, but look at her now. She was awesome! It's almost as if the ball itself never wanted to leave her.

Of course he figured she would be great. She did have the number 10 jersey. He just never expected that she was this exceptional at it.

He listened as the whole side of the stadium supporting Nankatsu stood on its feet and cheered for them. They were celebrating on the field as well. His friends all started to clap and whistle for their Anego, being as proud as he was of her for scoring the first goal of the game.

"Anego's pretty good, huh?" Misaki turned him.

He laughed and nodded.

"It makes you kinda proud to wear this shirt," Wakabayashi stated as he pointed the shirt he and his friends were wearing.

_Anego's Boys_

He remembered the guys all forcing them to wear this before coming to the stadium. They explained that to show their full support for their Anego, they had to wear this shirt to any of her match, if not all of her matches.

_"_ _And why the hell do we even have to wear this?" Wakabayashi questioned. "How long did you guys even have this prepared?"_

_"_ _Since you three told us you guys were coming back," Kisugi answered nonchalantly. "But anyway, when you have one of the charms, you're officially part of the Anego Support Squad."_

_"_ _What the hell?"_

_Tsubasa took a look on charm hanging on his neck. She gave him, Misaki-kun, and Wakabayashi-kun one after their match against the second years. She explained to them that it's supposed to tell that even if she's missing their game, no matter where she was or what she was doing, she would be supporting them with all her being._

_When they noticed what was written on it, she chuckled._ Anego's Boys _, it read._

_"_ _You guys don't have to wear it if you don't want to," she said. "Ayame was the one who told me to write that so I can understand if you guys feel stupid wearing it."_

_He remembered promising her that he would wear it proudly to every game he would be playing. Misaki and Wakabayashi promised as well._

_Next thing they knew, her eyes were watering and they were starting to panic, but they were enveloped in a group hug as she called them idiots, but they were her idiots_

_So when Kisugi-kun offered them the shirt again, he took it with no complains._

_"_ _She supported us throughout this whole time," he started. "And still is. I think it's time we show her ours."_

_Every one of his friends smiled at him, agreeing with his statement._

_Wakabayashi-kun sighed, but there was a hint of a smile on his lips._

_"_ _Fine," he said as he and Misaki-kun took the shirt. "But just because it's for Anego."_

_He nodded and all three of them proceeded to take of their shirt and put this one on._

_For Anego indeed._

"Yes, Wakabayashi," Izawa said. "Be proud you're one of Anego's Boys. Not many get to be part of this."

"Izawa, shut up."

They all laughed again, but was interrupted as the game started again, and already the ball was in Nankatsu's possession. They began to cheer again as they ran past the Shikogo players in a heartbeat.

His eyes never left her as she led her team to victory.

They won 2-0.

End chapter


	12. Letters and Messages

They closed the shop for the day. Her mom usually reserved the whole shop for her team for them to celebrate their victory. It's only open for the team, their family, and close friends her teammates wanted to invite. Naturally her boys were invited. It's not a party without them after all.

She was out of her jersey and into normal clothes consisting of a simple light blue shirt and jean capris. Her jersey needed to be cleaned after that match. It was covered in grass stains. She didn't mind cleaning them off. It was a sign that they played really hard and did everything they can to win.

And they did. They were going to Nationals.

She smiled as she saw everyone laugh and tease each other while eating the food her mom and the cooks prepared just for them. Her mom told them to pig out, to make up all those calories they burned. They were more than happy to oblige. Every match did leave them starving afterwards.

She chuckled as she saw Ayame pick on Izawa-kun this time, Chieko-senpai and Rinko-senpai joining in. Apparently Izawa-kun has a little crush on Rika-chan. The duo could only flush as her cousin and her senpai teased them more.

Huh, now that she thought about it, they did make a cute people. Hm, she wondered if she started the betting pool for them. She'll definitely put ¥200 yen to see them together.

Her eyes turned back to Ayame as she moved from Izawa-kun to Misaki-kun. Those two hit it off in the friendship department when Ayame suddenly talked to him in French. Ayame's grandmother from her mother's side was French Canadian who migrated to the United States. Ayame learned French from her because that's the only language her grandmother knew, along with a few English. So growing up, her parents can all switch from English, Japanese, and French in their household.

Ayame and Misaki-kun were probably speaking in French again since nobody was bothering them. But, she noticed that one smile Ayame wore whenever she was enjoying (like really enjoying not the sadistic enjoyment she showed a lot) something.

Ooh, it seems like her cousin has a crush. Must keep for further use in the future.

"Why aren't you out there celebrating?"

She blinked as she was interrupted from thinking of ways to blackmai- er, revelry and looked across towards the seat across from her. She was surprised when she saw him there.

"I figured that they could do the celebrating for me," she smiled as she shrugged. "I think the world can handle enough crazies."

He chuckled as they looked back towards their friends, who were now singing some kind of pop song like they were drunks.

"I see your point," he remarked. She only chuckled back.

There was a comfortable silence between. Their friends' laughter and chortles were the only sounds they could her, added by the adults' small talk a few tables away.

"Great job out there," he suddenly said. "I didn't tell you before. I figured you were already swamped by praise and congratulations back then. At least, right now when it sort of calmed down, you can hear it."

She turned to look at him and smiled. "Thanks," she said. "I- I appreciate it."

He smiled back and again her heart skipped a beat.

"You know that was a pretty awesome kick you did," he told her. "Any tips on how to make it?"

She gave him a weird look. "Is the Oozora Tsubasa asking for my advice?" she asked teasingly. "Wow, that's new. The world is full of surprises."

He made a little pout and crossed his arms. "I just wanna know how you did it," he whined. "I didn't mean anything by it."

She snorted and snickered under her breath. "You sound like your brother when you whine," she informed him.

"I do not!" he retorted, offended. "I don't sound like Daichi." And then he added as an afterthought. "And I don't whine."

She continued laughed again as he only stuck his tongue out at her like a child.

"Alright, alright," she finally managed to say after laughing. "Fine. You don't like Daichi." She turned towards him and leaned over the table. "You want to know how I made the kick?"

He leaned over the table, too close. Her first instinct was to move away, she wasn't used to that kind of closeness to him and her heart felt like it was about to burst from beating too fast.

But she forced herself to stay.

"Well," she started. "It's a secret!" She said as she moved away from him.

She busted out laughing when she saw the shocked look on his face.

"That was mean!" he whined again. "You made me all excited for nothing."

She calmed herself from laughing. "Like I'm going to tell you one of my techniques," she said as she stuck out her tongue. "Besides, you should know by now Tsubasa-kun. My cousin's Ayame. That should have warned you about what I could be."

"Fine," he grumbled. "You win this round. But, watch out for my revenge."

"I'll keep my eyes open," she answered happily.

There was another silence between them. She took a sip on the straw from her drink and glanced at him from the corner of her eye. He was still quite pleasing to the eye and she could stare at him fore-

"Why didn't you ever write?"

That caught off guard and she proceeded to choke on her drink. He turned to her and immediately panicked, asking her if she was alright –obviously not- and asked if she needed any help, but she waved it off and gulped down the nearby glass of water.

"I'm okay," she breathed out after drinking the water. She turned to him, who was still looking quite concerned, but she didn't mind it.

"Sorry, can you repeat that?" she asked, even though she heard him quite clearly.

"I said 'why didn't you write'," he repeated calmly. "But, you don't have to answer if you don't want to," he added. Then he scratched his cheek. "I was just curious, is all. I- I was looking forward to it I guess. The guys rarely mentioned you when they wrote, and yeah…"

She felt her heart skip a beat, and her breath hitch. She didn't expect him to bring this up of all things. She didn't expect to say he was looking forward to her letters.

But she has to answer something.

"I," she started as she turned away from him to look down to her lap, her hands clenched into fists. "I just thought that you didn't to be bothered with another letter. Everyone else was writing to you, and you would probably have been tired about hearing the same thing, except from my view."

They were quiet for moment, and then he said, "At least one letter would have been nice."

She knew he didn't it in any way to hurt her, but she couldn't help feeling the pang in her heart when she heard that.

"Oh," she mumbled. "Sorry. I- I guess I should have sent you some them." There's lots of them in her room, inside the last drawer of her desk. All of them were ready to be sent, but she was too much of an idiot to show them to him.

"But it's alright!" he tried to tell her. "We're here now, and it's no use wallowing in the past. Besides, it's more fun to talk face to face, right?"

She blinked the tears away from her eyes, trying not to show that she was about to cry. She looked towards him and smiled as cheerful as she could be.

"Right!" she agreed.

He stared at her for a moment, but returned her smile, albeit it wasn't as big as hers.

"So, anyway I got a text from Yayoi-chan and she told me that Misugi-kun is excited to face you again on the field," she said, trying to change the subject.

Good thing they were on the same boat.

"Really?" he replied. "That's awesome."

"Yup," she drawled. "Even Hyuuga-kun texted me back saying that you should be prepared to lose to him."

"Well, he can try," he answered smugly, but then a sour look came on his face. "How come you have his number anyway?"

She rolled her eyes at him. "Well, duh. Who else was supposed to pick up Daichi when he's with his 'Kojiro-nii-chan'? The boys are too hostile against him, and will probably start a fight just as they start breathing in the same air space."

"T-that's not good," he said.

She hummed in agreement. "They're a total pain in the ass whenever they're with Hyuuga-kun, who mind you, thinks it's amusing to rile them all up. That jerk."

He chuckled at her aggravation and she couldn't help but feel glad about it. At least, they're not angsting about letters and whatnot anymore. They were better like this, laughing and talking like normal friends.

"You know, I've been here for almost a month now, and I still don't have your number," he told her.

She perked up and took out her phone. "Oh we can trade numbers right now if you want," she suggested. "I'll give you mine and you give me yours so we don't have to get crazy repeating numbers back and forth."

"That sounds like a good idea," he agreed as they traded phones. She took it and proceeded to key in her number and put her name in. They traded back their phones and she immediately went and to find his number. She found his name really quick and smiled to herself.

She decided to text him something.

_There now we can talk even if we're not face to face!_ _(*^_ _^*)_

Her phone vibrated immediately.

_Haha you're right! Then I could bug you about the kick anytime now_

She looked up to see him looking at her from the corner of his eyes, but there was smile on his face.

She stuck her tongue out at him and turned back to her phone.

_I told you I'm not telling you. Ever_

Her phone vibrated again.

_You'll tell me soon. I just know it._

She glared at him from across the table and he only smiled back at her. She sighed and gave a smile back.

She might have failed to send him her letters, but at least by texting him, maybe she could make it up.

* * *

She opened the door to her room and trudged softly inside. The party ended a few minutes ago and everyone already left.

The setting sun's beams came from her window, lighting her way across the room. She stopped before her desk and sat on her chair. She gingerly opened the last drawer and saw yet again the envelopes all neatly stacked on top of each other. She took them all and laid them on her desk. She gingerly took one and felt the texture of the envelope with her fingers.

He said he was looking forward to have gotten one when he was in Brazil. Why didn't she ever send one?

Right, because she was an idiot and a coward. Now, she made a mistake and she couldn't turn back time just to undo it.

There were at least 30 of different letters, all in their own envelope. She wrote almost every month, she remembered, detailing the events in the past couple of days. There were even some special ones where she wrote about the games of the boys and some of hers, or about one of their shenanigans they always seemed to get pulled in.

She tried to imagine what his reaction would be when reading her letters. Would he chuckle like she did when he read how Ishizaki-kun managed to get a crab angry at him when they went to a beach? Would he be laughing as he imagined Izawa-kun and Kisugi-kun run away from girls on Valentine's Day? Would be proud when she told him she was picked as captain in her last year as a junior high student?

She dropped her head and tried to shake those thoughts away. It's no use wallowing for missed opportunities, they're never coming back.

Her phone lighted up from its place on her desk.

She was surprised to see a text from him with an attached image. She quickly opened it and laughed when it was him and Daichi, the little boy doing a peace sign as Tsubasa held the phone away from them.

_Daichi wanted to send you a picture of us when he learned I had your number._

She quickly texted him back.

_Aww! Daichi-kun's so cute!_

Her phone vibrated as soon as the message left her phone.

_What about me? Aren't I cute?_

She smiled and pressed the keys on her screen.

_Hmm… Maybe. But Daichi's still cuter._

Her phone received another reply.

_Wow, thanks a lot. I think you just crushed my ego._

She raised an eyebrow and replied back.

_You have an ego?_

Then there was another reply back.

_Boo. You meanie._

She smiled even wider than before tapped her buttons once more.

_Glad to be of service._

Her phone lighted up again.

_Ugh. Fine you win again. Mom's calling so I guess I'll text you later. Ja!_

Her smile softened as she replied back.

_Anytime._

She put her phone down and looked at the pile of envelopes on her desk. She gathered them again and put them back in the bottom drawer.

Those letters might have missed their opportunities, but she promised that she would never miss another one again.

End chapter


	13. Of Trainings and Matches

"Man, it's so hot in here," Ayame complained as they got out of the bus. "Why did June have to be so hot?"

They were doing a training camp for prepare themselves for Nationals. Though the beach wasn't exactly one of the places she would pick first for something like this, but she guessed that works. It's also nice to have fun once in a while. Plus, then she didn't have to hear Ayame complain about summer vacation because she just wanted to show off the new bikini she bought.

Well, it's not like they're going to be playing beach soccer in just their swimsuits. It would be too uncomfortable with all those sand in places you didn't want it to be.

"Suck it up, Aya-chan," Chieko-senpai snickered towards her cousin. "Weren't you the one super excited for this trip?"

"I am. But this heat, I can't take it! Someone save me, I'm melting, arghhhhh!"

Rika peered down on her cousin as Ayame descended on the floor, pretending to be melting.

"I-is Ayame-chan going to be alright?" she asked, concerned.

She snorted as she walked past her cousin kissing the ground. "Don't worry about her Rika-chan. She always gets like this whenever we go to someone where it's really hot. She'll be fine," she assured her friend. "Just leave her there to complain about the heat."

"I-if you say so," Rika said as she followed her towards the villa they would renting for their whole stay of one week.

"You big asshole!" Ayame called out to her as she laid on her stomach and leaned on her elbows for support. "Why did I have a cousin like you who don't care about her poor little cousin whose birthday is coming up!?"

"Keep talking like that and I won't buy you that pair of shoes you wanted for your birthday," she replied offhandedly. "Maybe I should just use that money and buy your twin sister another game. It's still her birthday as well."

"No! Don't! I want those silver heels!" Ayame exclaimed as she got up from the cemented floor and quickly trudged her suitcase as she followed them inside. "Don't use your money to buy Ayuri another game. I love her and all but I need those shoes! Sanae!"

She laughed as she went upstairs to find the room she was going to be sharing with her cousin while her teammates chuckled at their antics.

"Wasn't that kind of mean?" Megumi-senpai asked as she followed her up the stairs. "Aya-chan is pretty into fashion and such."

"Nah, she'll be fine," she assured, "She knows I didn't mean it. Besides, I'll probably add clothes with those shoes."

"When is her birthday anyway?" Junko-senpai inquired as she opened the door across from the one was opening.

"In two weeks, on the Wednesday the week of National Preliminaries," she answered. "Better be ready for that because she's going to be pointing it out the whole day and making excuses that she need to do tough and draining stuff because it's her birthday."

"Did you hear that, buchou?" Junko-senpai called out down the hallway.

"Noted!" Their captain replied from one of the rooms. If she remembered correctly, she should be sharing a room with Emiko-senpai. "I'll be sure to give her more exercises on that day."

The people who heard her all laughed, and even the stoic Nao-senpai had a hint of a smile grace her face.

"Give who more exercises?" Ayame huffed as she finally managed to bring her stuffed suitcase up the stairs. Well, she was the one wanted to bring all those outfits with her. She told her cousin that she didn't need all of those, but Ayame only retorted that she never knew when a cute guy would talk to her. She only shook her head at that.

"Is that our room, Sanae?" her cousin asked as she found her entering the door of the room she opened.

"No, it's just the place where we're going to be sleeping for the next few days," she answered sardonically.

"Fudge you too!"

She laughed again as she proceeded to put her suitcase at the end of the left bed. She positioned her hands on her hips and looked around the room. It looked alright. There two beds against either wall as she stood across the large window that provided adequate lighting inside the room, but she was sure it would be better if the curtains weren't in the way. She walked towards the window and moved the curtains away. When she unlatched the lock on the window and opened it, she couldn't help but sigh in content as her face met the warm salty breeze.

She felt her phone vibrate from her shorts' pocket and quickly took it out from where it is.

She couldn't help but smile at who it was.

_Did you guys get there safely?_

He was so sweet sometimes.

"Woah that is some sweet view!" Ayame exclaimed as she ran beside her, dumping her suitcase and duffel bag on the floor. Sanae moved her phone closer to her. She didn't want to think what her cousin will do once she found out that she's been constantly texting Tsubasa for a few weeks now.

Ayame took out her phone and snapped some pictures of the view outside their villa.

She turned back to look at the view and she had to agree that it was quite spectacular.

The blue sea glistened under the sun's light as the white sand looked so beautiful against the color of the water. The waves rolled off into the sand lazily, pulled back in the same manner, as if it was inviting them get in there for a soak.

She couldn't help but wish he was here to see this.

"I'm going to go and ask Akane-buchou if we can take a quick dip in the sea before starting whatever she wants," Ayame told her as went out of there room, but stopping right by the doorway. "I heard we'd be eating first though. Don't take too long to get downstairs. You know how we are with food. It'll be gone in an instant."

She nodded, "I'll be down there soon."

"Okay!" Then Ayame was out of the room.

She went back to her phone and tapped in her reply.

_Yes we got here safe and sound. You should see the view from our window. It's amazing!_

She took a picture of the scenery and sent it to him.

Not even a moment passed, her phone vibrated again.

_Awesome! Wish I was there to see it in person._

Her heart skipped a beat, like it usually did, and her smile grew wider.

_Yeah, me too. But anyway don't you guys have a match today? What are you doing texting me?_

Her phone vibrated as soon as she sent the message.

_We do, but it doesn't start until a few more minutes. We're just waiting until they tell us to start._

She wasn't even done reading the message when she received another one.

_Scratch that, we're starting. I have to go soon._

She quickly tapped in her reply.

_Oh okay. Well, good luck! And tell everyone to play carefully. Don't want you guys getting injured right before your Prefectural Tournament._

She received his reply quickly.

_Yes, mom. We will._

She pouted to herself and pressed her keys.

_I'm just looking out for you guys! No need to be a smartass._

Her phone lighted up again.

_Haha. I'm kidding. But seriously though I gotta go. We're starting._

Well, why didn't he say so earlier?

_Well, go! And have fun. Try to go easy on them. Like let them get the ball at least once._

Her phone vibrated for the last time.

_Haha. I'll try._

She put her phone back into her pocket and looked out the window again. There was another breeze coming and she welcomed it happily.

Seeing his name across her phone always made her happy. She couldn't help but feel excited whenever she gets a message from him. It felt like, he really did want to talk to her, even though his friends were always with him. Out of all people, he would rather talk to her than anybody.

Though she didn't look more into it. They were friends, close friends and she wouldn't let her feelings break that friendship.

She turned away from the window and stretched her arms high above her head. She did need to go downstairs to eat. Hopefully they still left some food for her.

* * *

Well, he did say that he would try giving their opponent the ball at least one, and he did. She never mentioned that they could have it more than that.

The ball was again in their possession, his teamwork with Misaki-kun coming into play again as he quickly passed the ball to him and score another goal.

The whistle resounded to tell of their fourth goal of the match.

All of his teammates congratulated them again as they scored the point for the team yet again. The other team must have been in shock and denial still. They probably didn't expect that a team like them who had six first years as their starting members would be destroying them in this match. Well, they were the ones who underestimated Nankatsu, and he never backed down from a challenge.

"Good job, Oozora, Misaki, keep it up," Takano-buchou said to them.

At first, he was a little wary of their captain. He did do nothing when they played against the upperclassmen. Both of his friends were injured so early in the game, and he didn't even say anything to the upperclassmen. Nobody knew about this, but he held a grudge against him for quite some time. Only when Takano-buchou sat them down for a talk and explained his actions at that time did he start to see him in a different light. The captain only wanted to how far they would go to be part of the team, and how determined they are to win Nationals for them. He did apologize for his lack of actions during that time. Of course, being them, they forgave him quite easily.

So, now they were part of the regular team and had a nice relationship with all his teammates. But more than that, it was fun to play with his friends again in an official match, friendly or not. Though it was just him, Misaki-kun, Izawa-kun, Taki-kun, Kisugi-kun, and Wakabayashi-kun, he heard that his friends were first choices when in need of substituting.

It was their second official game as part of the regular team, and the match was turning almost exactly like their first one, or in other words, total annihilation (that was what Wakabayashi-kun described it as). He just scored again, making the score 5-0.

He's not exactly complaining. Don't get him wrong, he was okay with winning, except maybe he wanted a little more challenge. He's not bragging his soccer skills, per say. It's just that, he was expecting the adrenaline coursing through his veins, his heart beating fast, and giving out everything he got because his opponent was doing the same thing.

Right now, it just feels like eh. It was an alright match. They're winning.

The whistle sounded again to end the second half. They won 6-0 nothing.

No surprises there. The other team kind of gave up once they scored their third goal of the match.

He had to admit but when he watched the finals of the Girls' Prefectural Tournament, he expected the games he would be playing would be as intense as that game. Or maybe it was just because she was there playing with all her heart that made him want to see the same thing on people.

Well, he just had to wait until they start the Prefecturals and hopefully Nationals.

Yes, Nationals would be awesome. Everyone was there and they were expecting Nankatsu to be in it. And he's not one to disappoint.

"Hey!" Kisugi surprised him as he threw an around his shoulder. "What's wrong with you? We won the game thanks to you guys!"

"Thanks," he chuckled. "Well, we didn't win it all by themselves, we had you guys."

"Sheesh, stop humbling yourself we all know you liked being praised so just shut up and take it."

"Hey!" he exclaimed as he pushed his friendly lightly away from him, but joined in with their laughter.

"Nah, he's just disappointed," Wakabayashi told them as they reached their bench. "I know I was. I mean I know it was only our second game but really, it didn't seem like they had a spine at all. I'm sure Tsubasa and Misaki probably agree with me. "

Their friends turned to them and expected an answer.

"Well, Wakabayashi-kun does have a point," Misaski admitted slowly. "I don't know maybe it's just because we've been away from Japan for so long, we have different expectations now. Though, it was different when with played with you guys. I don't exactly know how to explain it."

"I think it's just that people gave up when they saw they don't have a chance of winning anymore," Tsubasa added as he took a sip from his water bottle. "By the time we scored the third goal, they didn't put any more effort into playing, and I think that's what made us a little disappointed."

Izawa had a thoughtful look on his face. "I can't exactly fault you guys for thinking that. The only school here in Shizuoka that's really worth to notice is Otomo High, but that's because Urabe-kun and the others are in that school. He was captain of the Otomo Junior High last year and they were pretty tough."

"Hopefully they didn't lose his spunkiness by this point," Wakabayashi said.

"If anything, he'll probably be more fired up now that you guys are here," Taki answered as he put his arms behind his head as they started their walk home. They already separated from their senpai-tachi a few minutes ago.

"Besides, if you guys really wanted a challenge, the girls versus boys' game is coming up soon," Kisugi added excitedly.

"I've been hearing about that a lot of times now," Misaki remarked. "How does it work exactly?"

"It's just as the name describes, we play against the girls' team," Izawa explained. "It's just like a regular game, except you don't have to add overtime or penalty kicks if you don't want to. That's what we did last year.

"Hey, I remember Sanae-chan telling me about that event," Tsubasa interjected. "She told me you guys felt too lazy about that. So you guys decided to forget about it and make it a tie."

There were sly grins and smirks on his friends' faces, but he didn't know why exactly they were doing those.

"What?" he asked. "Did I say something funny?"

"Nothing," Izawa answered quickly. "But anyway, that was what Anego decided. She didn't want to go through all that hassle and just left it at that."

"That might be the case this year though," Taki said. "Ayame-chan's not sick anymore and their teamwork is better than ever. They're going to be a real pain."

Izawa tsked and gave smug smirk towards his friend. "Oh but you forget, we have this three with us this time." He gestured to Tsubasa, Misaki, and Wakabayashi, who only blinked owlishly. "Let's see them try and get pass them."

"Yeah but-"

He smiled as he listened to his friends talk about the odds of them winning the girls versus game. Misaki-kun and Wakabayashi-kun would sometimes join in to ask a question or the likes.

He didn't care about winning or losing in that match. He just that he would be having fun playing against the girls, especially her. He's been asking her about a match against him and she always told him to wait for this match, which was just around the corner. Man, he couldn't wait.

He separated from his friends when they reached his house.

"I'm home!" he called out as he started to take off his shoes.

"Welcome back!" his mom greeted him as she peeked out of the kitchen. "How was the match?"

"It was alright," he answered as he went towards her and gave her a hug. "We won."

"That's good," she replied as they went in the kitchen.

"Where's Daichi?" he asked as he grabbed a cookie from a plate on the table. Huh, it was definitely from the Nakazawa's shop. He could recognize the taste anywhere. She's been bringing some of her sweets to school and he couldn't say no whenever she offers them. Well, he's not complaining, anything they cook was bound to be amazing.

"He's up in his room, napping," his mom whispered. "Try not to wake him."

"Okay," he said as he went out of the kitchen with his duffel bag and a cookie in his mouth.

He quietly went up the stairs and proceeded to his room, closing the door gently so he didn't wake his brother up. He took his phone out of his bag and put it on top of his desk. He took some clothes out of his drawer to change into.

Before he could finish pulling down his shirt, his phone buzzed. He finished changing his clothes quickly and went to grab his phone from where it was.

He couldn't help but smile when he saw who it was.

_I hope you guys didn't crush them so bad._

She was really witty sometimes.

He started tapping his screen as he plopped on his bed.

_Well, it wasn't as bad as the first time. We won by six points._

His phone vibrated right away.

_Six points?! That's horrible! I thought I said to take it easy on them and let them have the ball at least once._

He chuckled at her reaction. Trust her to lecture him about winning of all things.

_They did! But even then they still couldn't manage to score._

Her reply made him laugh even more.

_Oh Tsubasa-kun, what are we going to do with you? You're too much for small teams in Shizuoka._

He tapped his keys quickly.

_I'm just that awesome._

His phone buzzed yet again.

_Who are you and what happened to our humble Tsubasa-kun?_

He was quick to reply back.

_He and I are one the same. He just decided to grow up._

Another ping came from his phone.

_Well, whatever. As long as you don't make your head to big. I'll be sure to pop it back to its normal size._

Oh, really now?

_Really, now? And how are you going to do that?_

There was a short pause, but his phone lighted up again.

_Defeat you in a match of course! The girls versus boys match is coming up soon and that's the perfect chance to stop your head from growing too big._

That made him laugh. He knew she was joking, but he couldn't help but answer back.

_Huh, I doubt it._

There was another reply.

_Why else do you think we're in a training camp right now?_

Then he replied just as fast.

_Then you better make use of them training, because I'll be here waiting._

His phone vibrated once more.

_Oh you bet I am. Just you wait till I kick your ass._

Before her could reply, there was another message.

_But anyway, captain's calling for more training, THAT I'LL USE TO DEFEAT YOU, so I'll talk to you later. Ja ne!_

He answered back quickly.

_Right, take advantage of that training and like I said I'll be waiting. I'll see you later._

There was no reply after that. But that was alright. Just as long as she made some time to talk to him, it was fine.

"Nii-chan? Are you awake?" Daiichi's drowsy voice came from the other side of the door.

"Yeah, I'll be out in a second, Daichi!" he called out as he got up from his bed and pocketed his phone.

He couldn't wait until the girls' come back, then he could have that match with her.

End Chapter


	14. Girls vs Boys

She looked up the clock for the umpteenth time, wishing for it to hit the time she wanted it to be. The voice of their Japanese History teacher droned on and on about something they already learned since their grade school days.

She kept shifting her eyes from their teacher towards the clock, as if she continued to look at it each moment, time would magically move itself faster. Which it didn't and only a second has passed since the last time she looked at the clock.

She swept her eyes over the classroom and had to stop smiling at her cousin's and Misaki-kun's antics. They were making faces and gestures at each other, probably about the game later this afternoon on who would win and who would lose, albeit discreetly so they wouldn't get the attention of their teacher. Honestly, she expected this behavior from her cousin, but Misaki-kun? Ayame probably did something to make the nice boy join her in her antics.

Her eyes moved towards Wakabayashi-kun, who of all things was sleeping up right. How in the world did he manage to do that? And how was it that their teacher hasn't notice a thing.

She shook her head and swept her eyes once more around the room and her eyes landed on him. He was looking out the window, his hand idly holding onto a pencil. His chin was propped up on his other hand as he continued to stare in boredom, probably like her.

As if sensing he was being watched, he turned around towards her direction.

Oh shit, better play it cool.

Their eyes met, and she waved back with a smile, her heart beating 200 miles per minute. Oh god, she hoped he didn't realize it was her that was staring. That would really be embarrassing.

She almost sighed in relief when he only smiled back and turned back to stare out of the window.

Not wanting that event to ever happen again, she went back to face their teacher and glancing at the clock. Huh, her people watching managed to waste five minutes. Only another ten minutes left. She could do this.

Only ten more minutes before the girls versus boys' match, and soon they'll be able to play against each other.

In an effort to try not to doze off, she didn't realize time move by and the final bell rang to signify the end of class for the day.

Immediately, she sat up and gathered her things, seeing that Ayame was already packing up even before the bell rang.

"Come on, slow poke. We still have to change."

Speaking of her cousin.

"Calm down, I'm almost done packing up," she told her as she clasped the latch of her bag together. No sooner after that, Ayame pulled her out of her chair and ran out of the room, while shouting out a quick promise of winning towards the three boys they were supposed to play against.

"Geez, you're awfully for someone who can move really fast on the field," Ayame told her as they ran down the hallway (they weren't really supposed to do that, but Ayame was never one to follow rules anyway).

"Well sorry for trying not to get in trouble," she apologized sarcastically. Her cousin was really too impatient.

"You're going to get trouble with me if you don't run faster, missy," her cousin retorted as they got out of the building.

She only rolled her eyes and finally agreed with her cousin as they both ran towards their clubroom to change into their jerseys. She was as excited as Ayame was for this game.

They opened their clubroom to see some of their teammates already changing.

"Look at what you've done!" Ayame pointed at her. "Now we're late."

"Ayame, they're changing. It's not like they're already leaving to go to the field by the river. Not even everyone's here," she explained as she left her fuming cousin to block the doorway to start changing.

"Can you move out of the way Kiseki, or do I have to kick you?"

Nao-senpai's form towered over her cousin, who only squeaked in apology as she went inside to finally change.

"Man, it's finally here," Chieko-senpai sad excitedly as she took off her black socks. "I can't believe we're playing an official game against the boys."

"I wonder if we can really take them on," Megumi-senpai pondered out loud as she pulled down her jersey over her head. "It is proven that men are physically stronger than women."

"So?" Emiko-senpai said, "As long as we prove to them that we have a better technique and strategy, then we definitely can beat them. Besides, I want to see that goal keeper play. What was his name again?"

"You mean Wakabayashi-kun, senpai?" She answered as she put on her white socks.

"Yeah, him," Emiko-senpai replied. "I heard that he was a genius goalie. We should test him out of its true."

"Not only that, but we they also have those two other first years," Junko-senpai added as she tightened the laces of her cleats. "Misaki-kun and Oozora-kun right?" She turned to Sanae who was busy tying her hair in their usual messy ponytail.

"Yes," she nodded her head. "Tsubasa-kun and Misaki-kun were called the Golden Duo back when we were young, and they still are. So we have to watch out for them once they begin their attack."

"So, it's like you and Aya-chan then?" Chieko-senpai asked as they all went out of the clubroom to finally start their walk towards the field.

"I guess you could say that," she said, scratching her cheek.

"Well, then I leave the two to you and Ayame then," Akane-buchou told them. "The Duo versus another Duo. People will pay to know who's better between the two."

"Of course it would be us," Ayame scoffed as crossed her arms. "We are the Victory Duo. We bring certain victory to the team."

"… You just thought of that didn't you?" She asked her cousin blankly.

Ayame whirled to face her with an irritated scowl on her face. "Of course not! See, that's what you get for not listening to gossip. We've been called that by other schools when we were in junior high because whenever we start playing seriously, we've never lost a game before."

That seemed really farfetched, but okay then. And they've lost a game before. When they were doing that friendly game with Arino Gakuen. Granted, she was laughing most of the time because the girls of Arino kept making jokes and everyone knows she was a sucker for corny jokes. Except Ishizaki's because his jokes didn't make any sense.

"The Victory Duo, huh?" Shiori-chan wondered out loud. "I think it suits you guys."

Oh no, Shiori-chan agreed to it. Now, everyone else will join in this notion of the certain victory that they were supposed bring.

"See, I told you so," Ayame winked at her. They just had to make her head bigger, didn't they?

She could only and shake her head as they laughed and continued to walk.

"Well, what about Takano-senpai?" Rinko-senpai brought up. "He's their center forward, and a very good one at that."

"Leave him to Akane," Emiko-senpai told everyone. "They have a little scuffle to end and our captain is more than happy to end it, ne?"

"Oh you bet I am," Akane-buchou answered heatedly. Sanae had to blink to make sure she was imagining the flames that was surrounding their captain.

"Woah, is there some juicy gossip I should have known about our captain and Takano-senpai?" Chieko asked.

"It's not really known to lower years, but they have this weird rivalry going on ever since they were young," Megumi-senpai explained to them. "Well, it's mostly Akane challenging Takano-kun for a match to prove that she's better than him."

"Aww, that's so cute!"

"To you maybe," Junko-senpai groaned. "But it's getting too old for us third years. It's been going on for years and they still won't stop. It also doesn't help that Akane loses most of the time."

"Junko, shut up," Akane ordered to her friend.

"What? It's true!"

Megumi-senpai had a thoughtful look cross her face. "I'm pretty sure they're in a tie right now, Junko-chan. The last time they battled was when they played volleyball last year when we had Sports Day. Akane-chan won that round."

"That was because I was there," Emiko-senpai added as she patted Akane's back, who stumbled from the force of their contact. "I saved all those balls for you, didn't I?"

Their captain could only massage her temples. "Just shut up all of you. You're giving me a headache."

"Fine, spoil sport," Junko pouted. "Well, we're here anyway. I guess let's just wait and see how this match will turn out."

Sure enough, they arrived at the field, which was getting packed with people. They did some advertising of the match when they finalized all the details of how it was going to be. Since then, they told some of their other friends about it, and using Ayame's artsy talent (which she usually reserved for designing clothes. They promised to go shopping with her in Shibuya when they go to Tokyo for Nationals), she made a poster for the match that they posted in Sanae's mom shop and a few other places.

They did the same thing last year, albeit a little less on advertising. But many people still went so they must have figured that the game this year would be even greater than last year, maybe even better considering who would be playing this time.

Besides, the betting pool from last year left almost everyone unsatisfied with how the match ended.

She found her mom sitting with the Oozora's near the middle of the slope towards the field. It seemed like she left the shop to their employees just so she can the match.

"Anee-chan!" Daichi waved as they arrived near them.

"Here comes my girls," her mother greeted them as they went to her.

"Hey mom," she said as she gave her mom a hug, Ayame doing the same, as their teammates said theur greetings.

"Hello to you as well, Oozora-san," she greeted to the Oozora matriarch. The other girls followed as well, but left soon after to go to their bench area, leaving her behind.

"Hello to you girls," she greeted back. "It's so nice to see you guys again in uniform. Last time I saw Sanae-chan playing was last year, I think. You guys did do the same thing last year."

"Yeah," she chuckled and finally turned to the child who was trying to get her attention.

She pick Daichi up her arms and hoisted him up. "Hey there, squirt," she said. "I haven't seen you forever. I miss my favorite boy in the whole world." She then proceeded to nuzzle his face.

"Stop it Anee-chan!" Daichi laughed, "That tickles."

She laughed and turned to her mother.

"I'm surprised you managed to get out of the shop at this time, Mama," she said. Daichi was starting to play with her hair. "It gets busy at this time of the day."

"Well, we do have the nicest employees in the world," her mother replied. "They told me to go here when Natsuko-chan came with Daichi-kun to buy some snacks while they watch the match today." Then she gave a wink towards the older Oozora. "Besides, Natsuko-chan and I have a bet going on."

She gave a dry chuckle with what she just learned from her mom. "You guys are betting too?" she asked.

"Of course!" her mom exclaimed. "So you better teach those boys a lesson."

She heard Oozora-san chuckle, and was it just her or did it suddenly become colder?

"Not if my Tsubasa can help it, Haruka-chan," Oozora-san replied.

"Are you sure about that, Natsuko-chan?" her mom answered in the same pleasant tone (too pleasant).

"Oh you know I'm always sure when it comes to Tsubasa's talent, Haruka-chan."

"Really now? I guess we'll just have to wait and see."

Both ladies began to chuckle, but she could feel a little tension coming from both and them. She could only laugh nervously as she watched them smile towards each other.

"Finally you guys are here!" Ayame's voice drifted to her ears. It seemed like the boys were here.

"Onii-chan!" Daichi called out from behind her, waving his arms ecstatically. Yup, they were here.

"Hey there, little man," he heard his voice come from behind her. She turned around and smiled as he walked nearer to the four of them.

"Hey," she greeted him once he arrived.

"Hey," he smiled back. He went to his mom to give her a hug and greeted her mom a good afternoon.

Daichi reached his arms out to his brother, who took him happily.

"Are you excited to see this game?" he asked as he hoisted him higher on his shoulder.

"Yup!" the little boy exclaimed energetically.

"So who are you going to cheer for?" he teased. "Are you going to cheer for your Onii-chan or for your Anee-chan?"

The child clearly didn't know what to answer. "Um," he stuttered as he made hand motions.

Tsubasa gave out a laugh and ruffled his hair. "I'm just kidding, Daichi," he said, "You can cheer for whoever you want."

"Mou," the little boy pouted. "Nii-chan is so mean. Always teasing me."

"But, you know Daichi-kun," she leaned closer to the little boy to whisper loudly to his ear. She wanted him to hear what she was going to say. "I think that was your Nii-chan's way of saying you should cheer for him. He is going to need it the most if he wants to win this game."

That caught him off guard and she almost laughed out loud when she saw his face.

"Wha- What?" he spluttered.

Daichi giggled as well as the two mothers who heard what she said.

"I'm not going to lose," he whined. "Definitely not."

She chuckled and gave him a wink. "Let's just wait and see." She turned away from them and stretched her arms over her head. "Well, I better head to the bench. Ayame's probably fuming already about where I am." She looked over her shoulder towards him. "You coming?"

"Oh, yeah," he answered as he gave back his brother to his mom. He followed after her as they waved goodbye to their family.

Once they were out of earshot, they began to chat.

"So Mikami-san's actually going to be a referee for this game?" she asked as they walked towards the bench area.

He nodded in confirmation, "Yeah. Wakabayashi-kun told him about this game and it interested him apparently. He said something about not seeing this kind of match-up often. So he told Wakabayashi-kun if he could come and see it. It was actually Shiroyama-san who asked if he wanted to referee since Mizuno-san would be gone today."

"Huh," she replied. They were nearing the bench area and some of their teammates were already warming up.

"Nakazawa Sanae, stop socializing with the enemy and get your ass over here!"

They both laughed as they heard Ayame shout her order to her.

"Well, you heard your cousin," he told her. "You better stop socializing with the 'enemy'. Don't want you spilling any secrets now. 'Course I'm not complaining."

She punched him lightly on the arm. "Shut up," she smiled. "Like I would tell you anything."

"Hey, I tried."

"Whatever," she rolled her eyes. She turned towards to her side and looked over her shoulder. "I'll see you on the field!"

She called out as she ran towards her teammates.

She arrived and already, they were on her.

"So that's Oozora Tsubasa, huh?" Chieko-senpai remarked as Junko-senpai helped her stretch. "He looks cute. 9/10 good job Sanae."

"Senpai!" she exclaimed as was about to take a drink from her water bottle.

"What? Aya-chan told me you like him. Besides you guys were pretty chummy from what I saw. Are you sure you guys aren't dating?"

"Yes, senpai, I am definitely sure we are not dating," she confirmed, trying to will her blush to die down.

"That's because Tsubasa-kun's number one priority is soccer," Ayame interjected as she checked her shoelaces.

She glared at her cousin with the power of a thousand suns. Ayame ignored her. "Shut up!" she told her.

"Aww," she heard Shiori-chan exclaim. Great, now everyone would start pitying her.

"Come here, little one," Chieko-senpai ordered as she hugged her close to her chest and stroked her hair. Oh god, not this again. "There, there. Don't worry. There's many fish in the sea. He's an idiot for missing out on an awesome girl like you."

"Do you want me to talk to him?" Junko-senpai asked.

"I'll set him straight for you," Nao-senpai suggested.

"I'll help find you another guy," Emiko-senpai added.

She broke out of Chieko's grasp and turned to everyone. "I am _fine._ I don't want anyone to talk to him. Nobody is setting anyone one straight, and I do not need or want a relationship at this moment."

"But you want to have one wi-"

"I swear to god, Ayame. If you do not shut up I'm going to tell my mom to cancel our internet subscription."

Ayame turned to her, fear written on her face. "You wouldn't-"

"Try me," she challenged.

"Shutting up."

She sighed, "Thank you." She turned towards her teammates. "Now, can we please go back to warming up? I don't want to pull a muscle when we have our tournament coming soon."

"Good advice, Nakazawa," Akane-buchous spoke finally. "We don't want injuries when we have a tournament so close."

Thank you, Akane-buchou. May your future be a bright one.

She was met by grumbles and complaints, but they all followed her orders.

After a few minutes of warm ups, Akane-buchou and Takano-senpai were called for the coin toss.

When it was done, Akane-buchou gave them a thumbs up as she walked towards them, a sign that they have the ball first.

"Okay, everyone," their captain started as they all huddled around. "This is it. The match we've all been waiting for. I don't have words to say to you guys, but this."

They watched as she took a deep breath before speaking again.

"Kick their asses!"

They all shared smiles and voiced out there agreements. They stood up from their huddle and started to go to their places.

"Let's go ladies," Akane-buchou ordered. "Let's show them what even if we style our hair and love clothes, we can still win."

"Hell yeah we are," Ayame agreed softly as they reached the center line. They met Tsubasa and Misaki there, who were waiting for them to start.

"You," she pointed at them. "You're going down."

Misaki gave a sly smile towards her cousin. "Are we now, Ayame-chan? Have you ever thought that it might your team who would be losing?"

Ayame returned his smile with her own smirk. "Oh, you're so on."

As those two had their stare down, she turned towards the other midfielder across from her.

"So we finally meet," he started. "I get to have a match against you."

"I guess so," she said. Her eyes held his gaze and a hardened look entered them. "Don't go easy on me, you hear," she ordered. "'Cause I'm definitely not."

He only gave her a smile. "Wasn't planning on it."

"Good."

"But no hard feelings when you lose," he added.

She only smirked in response. "Oh you're on."

Just after she said that, the whistle blew off and she kicked the ball.

Already, Tsubasa and Misaki were on her, but she managed to keep both them from stealing the ball and barely ran past them. She could hear the surprise cries coming from the other guys and she only smiled.

She took a glance to her left and saw Shiori free. She was about to pass it to her, when Izawa tackled the ball away from her feet.

"Shit!" she exclaimed as saw who managed to catch the ball. Why did it have to be Tsubasa off all people?

"Goddamn it! Ayame, get the ball away from him!" she told her cousin as she raced after Tsubasa, who was running back to their side of the field.

"Really, Sanae?!" Ayame screamed back. "You had one job!"

"I'm sorry!"

Tsubasa meanwhile, proved to be a little bit faster than the girls chasing him. As one of them was running to block him, he passed the ball. "Misaki-kun!" he called out to his friend.

"I got it!" he said, but didn't catch the ball when Junko-senpai intercepted the ball. She ran with for a few moments, before kicking it all the way to the other side of the field.

"Rinko-chan!" she screamed.

The ball soared high in the air for a few seconds as Rinko and Kisugi battled for the ball. Rinko jumped higher and managed to hit the ball with her head towards Ayame. She caught it easily and dribbled the ball towards the net.

"Block her!" Wakabayashi shouted to his teammates.

Ayame smirked and passed the two upperclassmen defenders easily. Despite that, Tsubasa stole the ball back with ease.

"Damn you Oozora Tsubasa!" she screamed as she turned back to chase him.

Tsubasa only laughed as he dribbled the ball back to the girls' field.

Luckily, she was close by.

She met him hallway and immediately they were in a duel for the ball possession.

"Is that all you can do, Sanae-chan?" he teased as he kept protecting the ball with his feet.

She didn't know why but something clicked inside her when he said that.

She smiled and said, "Not quite."

She then kicked the ball from under him and it rolled between his legs as she ran passed him and got the ball back in her possession. She could only laugh as she heard her confused gasps as he tried to figure out how she gained the ball.

She raced past Taki and Kisugi who swore as she passed by them easily, the ball always close to her feet.

She was almost in the penalty area when Takano-senpai appeared before her.

"Sorry, Sanae-chan," he told her. "But we're getting that first goal." He kicked the ball away from her feet with a cry of "Misaki!"

Sure enough, the boy got it with no sweat and raced the ball back towards their field, Tsubasa close by.

"Shit," she swore again under her breath as she ran as fast as her legs can back to her side. She managed to catch up to them, but barely. She was running right beside Tsubasa, blocking Misaki from passing to the other half of the Golden Duo.

What she didn't expect though was Misaki passing it to Takano-senpai who was unmarked and ran passed them.

"Fuck!" Ayame exclaimed as she left Misaki's side to chase after the third year.

Akane-buchou did say he would take of him. Good thing, she was already there blocking him.

"Are we finally finishing our contest, Akane-chan?" He teased the captain. "It seems like the perfect time to do it."

"Oh you bet we are, "she answered, blocking him from moving, "And I'm sure as hell going to be the winner. You are not getting a goal past me."

Takano laughed. "Maybe I'm not. But he is," he said, confusing Akane. He took advantage of it and kicked the ball to side where Tsubasa managed to break away from Sanae. "Oozora!"

"Hai!" he answered as he dived and did a header on the ball. Emiko was too slow to catch or block it.

The whistle sounded to ring the first goal of the match.

The boys gathered around to celebrate their goal as Sanae panted from the sprinting she did. Ayame walked towards her, also panting hard.

"They're good," her cousin huffed. "That goal would be hard on us."

She wiped her face with her shirt and shook her head. "No," she denied. "We've only begun."

Ayame turned to her and chuckled as she saw the smile on her cousin. There was that spark again in them, usually when she's having fun.

"Come on," Sanae told her as she jogged back to their places. "We have a goal to catch up."

Ayame smiled and stared at her cousin, already face to face with Tsubasa. She turned to look back at her and motioned for her to come over with her head. Ayame looked down and shook her head, beginning to jog to where Sanae is.

When she arrived, Ishida-san nodded and blew the whistle.

Already, Tsubasa and Misaki were on the attack, passing the both of them easily. They turned around to chase after them, Ayame marking Misaki to make sure the two's Golden Play didn't catch up.

With Misaki blocked, Tsubasa tried to look for someone free, which Taki was.

"Taki-kun!" he called out as he kicked the ball towards his teammate.

Taki was about to catch it, but Shiori got in the way and started dribbling the ball away from their post.

"Ah shit!" Taki swore as both she and Ayame followed their forwards across the field.

As Kisugi blocked Shiori, she kicked it away from her towards Chieko.

"Chieko-senpai!"

"Got it!"

Chieko managed to catch it with her chest and quickly dribbled it down the field. She was tackled by Kishiyama, one of the defenders and tried to give it to Fujino, another defender. Fujino caught it and made a long kick towards the other side.

"Buchou!"

Takano's eyes was looking straight at the ball, calculating where it would exactly land. He didn't expect to have Junko jumping and hit it with her head.

"Damn," he swore under his breath as he tried to fight for it with Rika. The girl's agility managed to win in the end and made another long kick towards the other side of the field.

"Ayame-chan!" she screamed for the other girl, who was already running to catch up with the ball. Misaki was chasing after her, not separating for her at all.

When she turned around, he also did as they both jumped and fought on who could hit it with their head. Luckily, Ayame was in the right position and hit the ball towards Shiori.

"Shiori-chan!"

The small girl kicked the ball towards the goal, but it was blocked by Wakabayashi and ball soared in the sky yet again.

"Damnit!" Ayame cursed as she watched the ball. She jumped up and caught it with her chest she got it and made a quick pass to Rinko.

"Rinko-senpai!" she screamed as their senpai tried to shoot from where she is. The ball flew towards the goal, but it was blocked by Wakabayashi again. It was in the air yet again.

"Go Wakabayashi!" The boys cheered.

Sanae, who was being marked by Tsubasa, broke away from him to catch the ball in the perfect position. "It's not over yet!" she shouted as she forced her legs to be quicker.

In a force of instinct and adrenaline, she jumped up from ground and twisted her body, making an overhead kick. Wakabayashi, who was still recovering from Rinko's kick, failed to save the ball.

The whistle blew and the score was now a tie.

Ayame ran towards her and helped her up as the other girls ran to them to celebrate their goal.

Tsubasa huffed as he tried to catch his breath. He wiped the sweat off his forehead with his hand as he remembered how Sanae broke past him.

When she ran past him, he was stunned by the speed she produced and as he watched her move away from him, he swore she had little wings on her back. She flew, plain and simple. And it was amazing seeing her do that.

"They're good," Misaki said as he appeared beside her. "I didn't know Anego could do an overhead kick."

He nodded as they watched the girls hug each other in happiness. "Me either," he admitted. "But you know me, I like being surprised."

Misaki laughed and punched his arm. "Ow," he exclaimed as he nursed his shoulder."

"You would," Misaki told him. Then he started walking away from him. "Come on, Mr. I-like-being-surprise. We still have a match to play."

He chuckled as he followed his friend towards the center of the field. When he reached it, she had the ball under her foot, looking down as she listened to something Ayame was saying.

She peered up and their eyes met. They held each other's gazes for a few moments, before she gave him a smile.

His heart skipped a beat.

He returned the smile with one of his own.

The whistle blew and the game continued on.

End Chapter


	15. Pre-National Jitters

Summer Vacation have finally started that Friday afternoon, which meant that they would be leaving for Tokyo soon to participate in Nationals. It was nice of Akane-buchou to give them the afternoon off to spend some time with their families before they leave on Sunday with the boys. They do have their tournament the same two weeks as they do. Apparently, the Association thought it would be cheaper and more efficient if they made both tournaments happen around the same time.

Now she had to double check their schedule every single time just so she can make it to at least one of the boys' matches. Why did they have to do that? Now she has to go rush from one place to another just so she can make it to both games.

Well, whatever. She'll cross that bridge when she gets there.

It was a Saturday, and she and Ayame were already done packing for their trip a few days ago. Since they didn't have anything to do, and they couldn't stop pacing around because they were too much excited for the tournament. Actually it was just her. Ayame was on her phone, blogging on that same site yet again.

"Will you quit doing that and watch some TV or something? You're making me feel tired just looking at you stressing over Nationals," Ayame whined as she moved all over their living room area.

"I can't help it," she grumbled as she sat down on the couch beside her cousin, but she was still jittery and couldn't sit still. "I tried everything to calm myself down."

"Like what? 'Cause I didn't see them," Ayame remarked as she continued to scroll down her phone.

"Well," she said as she stood up and began to pace again. "I double checked my stuff five times now, which I confirmed that I have everything prepared. I cooked us some food for lunch, which we both ate already. I tried to do some jumping jacks in my room to get rid of all this energy, but it didn't work. I tried reading, napping, and eating snacks. I even tried to watch Howl's Moving Castle but nothing works! I just can't seem to calm down."

She gripped her hair in frustration. She looked back at Ayame who only stared at her unimpressed with her whole tirade.

"Well, I can't help you then," she replied as she went back to her phone. "Besides, I don't even think its Nationals getting to you. The boys are riding with us on the same train. You're probably nervous because Tsubasa-kun's going to be there and you might do something stupid."

"That's definitely not it!" she screamed towards her cousin, who was hiding a smirk from behind her phone.

"Well, if you don't know what exactly to do with yourself," They turned to see her mom coming from the stairs. "How about going downstairs and help out? It's really busy right now and we need all the help we can get."

She shared a look with Ayame and they stared at each other for a few moments. Then Ayame leaned more into the couch and scrolled down on her phone again.

"I'm good," Ayame said. "I can stay up here while she helps."

"Oh hell no," She said as she grabbed onto her cousin's arm. "I'm not doing all that work by myself. You're coming with me."

"But you're one who can't sit down! Don't bring into it."

"You are helping, whether you like it or not. So quit whining and let's go."

"Nooo!"

Ayame tried to dig her heels on the floor, but she always did have a stronger grip and managed to pull her cousin out of the couch. Her mom only laughed as she watched them move around like overgrown children.

So here she was, wearing an apron on top of her shirt and capris, taking the orders of some girls from the other nearby school in Nankatsu. Kiyotaka Academy if she remembers correctly from what they told her.

She was waiting for them to look through the menu when the door opened. She turned to the door to greet whoever arrived.

"Hello welcome to- Ah, Tsubasa-kun! Daichi-kun! What's up?" she exclaimed.

The two boys waved back. "Daichi wanted some bread before we go to the field and meet up with the guys," Tsubasa explained.

"Oh, okay! Let me just finish this and I'll be right with you guys in moment by the counter," she said as she turned back to the two girls who seemed to be about ready to order.

"Are you guys ready?" she asked with a pleasant smile.

They nodded and told her what they wanted. She wrote it down quickly and was about to leave when she noticed they seemed to be debating about something.

"Can I still help you guys with something?" she inquired.

The two of them shared looks before the one the right release a sigh in defeat.

"Can we ask you something?" she said.

"Go ahead," she answered pleasantly. "I'll be more than happy to."

The two shared another look and she couldn't help but knit her eyebrows in confusion.

"So that guy," the girl started. "The one you just talked to. C-can we ask for his name again?"

D-do they have a crush on Tsubasa-kun? Oh no, oh no, fuck, no. That is so unfair. She knew she should have expected other girls to start liking him, but still.

"You mean Tsubasa-kun?" she replied trying to sound as nice as possible.

"Yeah," the other girl nodded. "A-are you guys dating?"

She wished.

"Oh no, no. We're not dating," she denied. "We're just… friends. Close friends." That seemed like a good way to describe their relationship.

"Is he dating anyone then?" the first girl questioned further.

Oh god, she hoped not. He's only been here for two months and it didn't seem like he talked to other girls aside from her and the team.

"Not that I know of," she answered truthfully.

"Oh," they muttered.

"It's just that I think we saw him one time at our school," the girl on the left explained.

"Well, he is part of our school's soccer team," she explained. "I think they had a friendly match at your school one time."

"He's cute though," one of them stated as she turned to see him talking with Daichi about the food they have displayed.

She gave a forced smile. "Well," she started as pleasantly as could muster. Which was good enough because they didn't seem to notice it. "If that's all you guys need, I'll have someone bring your orders for you. If you need help don't be afraid to ask any of us."

"Thank you!"

She gave them one last smile and went towards the counter.

"I'll be with you guys in a sec," she told them as clipped the order on the small window into the kitchen and pressed the ringer.

Once she finished that, she turned around to face the two brothers who looked ready to order whatever they came for.

"Sorry that took a while," she apologized.

"It's alright," he said. "It was quite busy. I can understand. Besides, Daichi and I could handle a little wait, can't we little man?" he ruffled the boy's hair.

"Yup!" the child answered enthusiastically.

She chuckled at their replies. Trust them to be the perfect gentlemen.

"So what can I get for you today?" she asked them.

"Oh, can I get some of the chocolate cornet, Anee-chan?" Daichi requested.

She looked to be in thought for a moment. "Normally, I would say no since that's really unhealthy for a boy like you," she said with a teasing smirk. Daichi looked to be bummed out, but Tsubasa seemed to have noticed what she wanted to do. "But since you asked nicely, I guess I'll give it to you."

Daichi's face lit up. "Yay! Thank you!"

They both chuckled at the boy's joyful response, amused that such a simple thing could turn his whole mood around.

She turned towards Tsubasa. "How about you, Tsubasa-kun? Do you want anything?"

He shook his head. "Nah, I'm fine. We just came here because Daichi said he wanted something from here."

She nodded her head. "Alright then," she said. "I'll be right back with the squirt's chocolate bread."

She didn't know why said that, she was going a few feet away to get the bread from the ones on display.

When she returned, she was about to ring it up when he asked something.

"Hey, do you and Ayame-chan want to go with us to field. The guys already called up Rika-chan and Shiori-chan and since they found out Daichi and me were already here, they wanted me ask you guys," he said, then added sheepishly. "That is, if you guys are free."

"Well," she started. "I have to ask my mom first."

"You can go," her mom's voice interjected. She appeared right beside Sanae. "Hello Tsubasa-kun, Daichi-kun."

They greeted her back politely.

"We can go?" she asked.

"Yes," her mother confirmed. "Rush hour is done by this time anyway. We can handle it from here. And don't ring that choco cornet up. It's on the house."

"Aww, really? Sweet," Tsubasa exclaimed. "Thank you so much, Nakazawa-san." Daichi followed suit.

Her mom chuckled. "You're very welcome," she said. "Just tell your mom to stop by sometimes."

"We will."

Then she turned to her daughter. "Now, shoo," she ordered jokingly. "You said you've been jittery the whole day. Go spend that energy playing soccer."

She gave a smile to her mom. "Thanks Mama," she said as she hugged her.

"Ayame," she called out to her cousin, who was in the process of untying her apron.

"I heard you," her cousin said.

She nodded then turned to face him again. "We'll be right with you. Just have to return my apron back."

"Take your time."

She dashed away from the counter to put her apron away. Ayame already returned her apron and was probably waiting along with Tsubasa and Daichi.

She returned once more to the shop and fair enough, Ayame was already with them chatting Tsubasa.

She went towards them with a smile, telling them that she was all set.

Once they started walking, they were back to talking about whatever Ayame and Tsubasa were chatting about.

Ayame tried to hide her smile as Daichi walked between them, holding onto one of their hands. They didn't seem to notice it at all. What Daichi just did made them look like a family, and it was pretty cute.

They also didn't seem to notice the two girls staring at them in bewilderment.

 

They arrived at the field to see the guys, along with Shiori and Rika, to be playing some kind of soccer with those who wanted to. Even Wakabayashi, who usually kept to his goalkeeper ways, was trying to grab the ball from Shiori using his feet.

They had to laugh as they heard him cry in frustration as Shiori nimbly moved the ball away from the goalkeeper while she and Rika passed it back and forth between them. What made it even funnier was the two girls weren't wearing any shoes at all. The boys who were playing with them, didn't stand a chance.

Ayame separated from them as she ran down the field, taking her sandals off along the way.

"Rika-chan right here!" She called out as she entered the field, completely shoeless.

"What, Ayame-chan is finally here? Oh hell no, this just made everything harder!"

They chuckled again and Daichi giggled on top of Tsubasa's shoulders. He said he wanted to be up there in the middle of their walk. Tsubasa could never say no to his brother.

"There you guys are," Misaki remarked as they arrived beside him. He didn't join in the weird game of keep away and instead laughed as his friends failed to steal the ball from the two, now three, girls. Morisaki and Takasugi were the only ones smart enough who decided to not join in the fun. "Thought you guys wouldn't make it."

"Who, us?" Tsubasa replied as Sanae helped him get Daichi off his shoulders, who decided he wanted to join with his other nii-chan and nee-chan playing keep away. "Like we would ever miss this."

Sanae took the seat beside Misaki as Tsubasa sat right beside her.

"It is our last free day before we go and play seriously for two whole weeks," she added as she began to her shoes off. She always liked the feel of grass between her toes. "We might as well spend it having fun."

"But aren't you playing soccer for fun?" Misaki asked her.

She turned to him with an incredulous look. "Yeah, but we're talking about Nationals here. Sure, you might have fun against them on the field, but once the game's done, someone has to go home with their dreams broken."

Misaki had a thoughtful look cross his face. "You have a point."

"But even then," Tsubasa interjected. "If you're actually having fun playing soccer, it doesn't really matter whether you win or lose."

Misaki and Tsubasa looked to her, expecting an answer.

"I don't know," she shrugged. "I personally don't mind losing that much. That is if we lost fair and square. But doesn't everyone join Nationals just to prove that you're the best in the country? Where's the fun in that?"

"… Do you find it amusing to take the fun out of everything?" Tsubasa inquired.

She answered by punching him in the arm as she stuck her out at him. Misaki laughed at his friend's misfortune for angering their Anego.

"So, are you joining in there little game?" Tsubasa asked as he noticed her bare feet on the grass. "You did take your shoes off."

"Nope," she answered as stood up and stretch her arms. "I just like the feeling the grass with my feet. Besides," she grinned slyly. "I have something much more fun."

She tapped both boys on their shoulder. Both of them looking at her with puzzled expression.

"Tag," she said and with a louder voice, shouted, "The boys are it!"

She took off just as she said that, making small eye contact with the other girls, who got her message as they also ran away from the guys. The boys looked stunned for a moment before Tsubasa got up and started to run after her.

"Hey!" he exclaimed with a smile. "That wasn't fair. You got a head start!"

"Everything's fair in tag!" she answered as she tried to run away from as fast as possible.

Soon, every one of them were running around the field, chasing each other. They were all laughing and joking around, like they didn't have a National Title to fight for.

For now, they were just going to have a little fun.

End Chapter


	16. Injuries

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you one random person for giving me a kudos

Chapter 16: Injuries

Their quarterfinal match ended quickly, with them winning 2-1. It was definitely hard getting those two goals, Hakone High was a tough opponent to beat, especially when they have Miyahara and Akasumi in their team, but they managed to win and was into the semifinals like they planned. That was a good thing, because she didn’t know what Akane-buchou would do to them in the Fall Soccer League if they didn’t win Nationals this year. It’s the third years’ last year before they go to their separate ways and try to be a member society.

If they lose, it wasn’t just them that would be disappointed. The lowerclassmen like them would be too, because they were playing not only for them, but for senpai-tachi as well. They wanted to give them the dream they’ve always wanted.

But, for now, they passed the quarterfinals and got into the semis. A little break from all those matches shouldn’t be that bad. Besides, their next match wasn’t until tomorrow.

Well, for her senpai-tachi anyway. She was out watching the boys’ quarterfinal against Hirado. It was the first of their game she could manage to watch because of their conflicting schedules and she couldn’t help but be grateful. She had a bad feeling that something was going to be wrong in this match, and if it happened to her boys, then its better if she saw it and make sure they were okay.

“Man, when are they going to start?” Ayame whined from beside her. “It’ so hot and really thirsty.”

She sighed and turned to face her cousin. “You know you didn’t have to come with me to watch, right? God knows how much I can’t stand you complaining right now. I’m nervous and tensed I don’t need to put up with your shit.”

“And that’s why I came,” Ayame replied calmly. “You’re not exactly in the right mindset right now because of your nerves. Who knows what you would do when you see one of them get hurt?”

That shut her up. Ayame knew how much she’s been stressing out about this game. Her cousin could pick up all the signs. She was squirming in her seat, she was constantly biting her lower lip, and she was even clenching and unclenching her hands together. She was definitely anxious.

“I’m sorry,” she apologized. “I just have this bad feeling and I don’t really know what to do about it.”

“Look, just calm down, okay,” her cousin tried to comfort her. “Whatever you’re anxious for, it’s probably not going to be that bad.”

She sighed again and nodded her head. “I just hope you’re right.”

Ayame patted her shoulder one last time before the crowd cheered and out comes the two teams, ready to play. Ayame, Shiori, and Rika was also cheering for Nankatsu as well, and normally she would be too.

When she that tall player from Hirado, her senses worsened. She just knew that he was bad news.

Hirado had the kick off were already on the attack. Kisugi managed to steal it really quick and pass it to Taki. They were doing great until he was suddenly blocked by Jito, the tall player.

She took a deep breath when Taki stumbled over as he hit Jito. Her hands were shaking really bad as she watched Taki have trouble getting up, clutching his shoulder in pain. Ayame held her left hand to stop it from shaking, but even then it didn’t help at all. She was shaking until the whistle blew to signal Hirado’s goal.

Takano-senpai and everyone else went to Taki, as if asking if he could still play. Knowing him, he would continue.

She managed to release a breath she didn’t knew she was holding when Taki stood up. Her eyes stayed on them as Tsubasa went near them and exchanged a few words with Jito, with the tall boy scoffing and returning back to his place.

The whistle blew again and it was Nankatsu’s ball this time.

She thought that everything would starting to be okay when as Tsubasa passed by almost everyone that tried to block him. Even Jito seemed to have a hard time catching up to him.

She hoped to soon.

Jito managed to hit Tsubasa and he went flying over.

“Tsubasa-kun!” she shouted in concern as she tried to stand up, but Ayame’s grip on her tightened, preventing her from going anywhere.

Her eyes never strayed from his unconscious form as Jito raced pass everyone.

Why wasn’t he standing up? Was he hurt badly? Oh god, she hoped it wasn’t too bad. Why wasn’t he STANDING UP?

The whistle blew once more to tell of another goal for Hirado, and the end of the first half.

She shook Ayame’s hand off and ran off away from the stands just as they took Tsubasa away from the field.

She arrived at the medical ward just in time to see everyone waiting outside. Her chest was heaving up and down as they turned to her with crestfallen and stoic faces. They didn’t ask why she was there, already knowing why she was there. They could never stop her from seeing them if they were ever hurt, even more when it was Tsubasa of all people.

She walked slowly towards them, waiting with them anxiously as stared at the door of the medical room.

She thought her heart stopped when she heard him scream in pain.

She gritted her teeth and quickly opened the door, closing it just as she went it and ignoring the surprised faces on the other boys’ faces.

“Tsubasa-kun!” she said as she walked quickly beside Takano-senpai.

“Sanae-chan?”

“Nakazawa-chan?”

They looked at her in surprised but she ignored them and directed her attention to the surprised doctor.

“How is he?” she asked, and took a moment for the physician to take in her words.

“Well, he seemed to be fine,” the doctor said to her. “Just had to relocate his shoulder.”

She gave Tsubasa a glare and both boys seemed to have tensed up from her instense stare.

“A dislocated shoulder,” she stated as she crossed her arms. The doctor went to his desk to write so something. “Just for that, you shouldn’t even be playing anymore.” Takano-senpai only closed his eyes in silence.

He was about to retort something, but she interrupted him.

“But I know, whatever I tell you, you wouldn’t listen,” she sighed. “So you better follow the doctor’s instructions and win this match.”

The two boys and the doctor all smiled, happy with what she said. She didn’t even notice the captain slip out of the room with a smile on his face, as if he knew that Tsubasa would be fine with her.

“Hey, what are you still doing with your shirt on? I still have to put bandages around your shoulder you know,” the doctor said from where he sat.

“What are you waiting? You heard him, get on with it!” she ordered.

“I will, I will, sheesh,” he said as he took off his shirt, albeit a little difficult with the pain from his shoulder.

She tried not to blush from seeing his toned upper body, but that soon ended when she saw the large purple bruise on his left shoulder. That looked really painful, but she has to remind himself that this was Tsubasa and not even a dislocated shoulder will stop him from seeing this match to the end.

“That should do it,” the doctor announced as he finished bandaging him.

“Thank you, doctor,” he said as moved his shoulder around to try it out.

“Well, hopefully you don’t hurt yourself even more in the next half,” the doctor joked as they all walked towards the door. “I don’t even want to know what your pretty lady would do if you make it worse.”

“Doctor!” she exclaimed as she blushed, but he didn’t seem to get it and only laughed.

“Yeah, I don’t want know either,” he agreed.

“Keep talking and I’ll be the one to make that injury worse.”

He just laughed as they got out of the room to be greeted by the boys faces.

“Are you alright, Tsubasa?” Izawa asked, concerned. “You sounded to be in extreme pain a while ago.”

“I’m totally fi-“

“Oh you know, he just had a dislocated shoulder,” she interrupted sarcastically. “But, hey no biggie right?” She glared up to him, wishing that their height difference wasn’t so huge so that her glare would be more effective.

The boys all looked at them in concern and she sighed defeated.

“He’s fine,” she told them. “Like I said, he has a dislocated shoulder, but he’ll be able to play.”

“Awesome!”

“Hell yeah!”

“We’re start our counterattack now!”

She watched them as their spirits were lifted quickly, just because he was alright. She couldn’t help but frown. She knew that if he continued to play, he was only going to hurt himself more. But, she knew, whether he was injured or not, he will win this match.

There was a whistle to tell everyone that their break was over and the boys all started to leave back for the field.

“Tsubasa-kun!” she called out.

He stopped from his run and turned to look at her, telling his teammates that he would catch up.

“Yeah?”

She opened and closed her mouth. Her voiced was stuck in her throat. She didn’t seem to know what to say.

Before she knew it, she took a step and threw herself at him.

“Just be careful out there,” she mumbled against his chest.

Tsubasa seemed to be surpised by her boldness, but returned the hug nonetheless. “I will,” he said.

They separated after a few moments, and she looked up to him with the biggest encouraging smile she could muster.

“Now get out there and win, Eagle,” she ordered him with a light push. “I know you can do it.”

That made him grin. “Eagle? I get a nickname now?” he teased.

“Just go.”

He laughed once again and proceeded to catch up with his teammates, leaving her all alone.

That was also the time she realized what she did and proceeded to flush in embarrassment.

She arrived back to her seat just in time to have the whistle blow to start the second half. Rika and Shiori both turned towards her in concern, but she gave them a nod to show that everything was fine. They grinned and went back to cheering the boys on their game.

Ayame was a different matter altogether.

“How is he?” Ayame asked.

“A dislocated shoulder,” she answered as she watched him ran with the ball. “He’s too stubborn to sit this one out.”

Her cousin patted her on her knee. “That’s just the way he is. No injury would get in his way when it comes to soccer.”

“That’s what I’m afraid off,” she replied. “He might seriously be too injured that he needs to give this up.”

Ayame didn’t have anything to stay to this as they continued to watch the match. Nankatsu was on the offensive, passing the ball between their players in quick succession, never letting Hirado gain possession of the ball.

Her heart continued to beat fast as he continued to run past those that tried to block him. She clenched her hands in her lap, hoping to whoever is up there that he scores.

Her breath stopped when he was hit by Jito again and fell to the ground.

“Tsubasa-kun!” she screamed as the four of them all stood up in worry. He wasn’t standing up again, and she so badly wanted to run out there just to make sure that he was okay.

But she didn’t and could only clench her fists harder and stayed where she was.

_Get up, damnit. Get up!_ She screamed in her head. _This is not going to be the end of your career. You have a team waiting for you Brazil. There are people waiting for you out there all over the world. Don’t let a simple high school game get in your way. GET THE FUCK UP TSUBASA!_

* * *

 

His shoulder throbbed a little, but he ignored it. He didn’t need to be a baby about this it was only a dislocated shoulder. They have a match to play, and they needed to catch up with that two goals. He needs to tough this out and win. They were all depending on it.

The whistle blew and the second half started again. He ran across the field as his team passed the ball with each other and it finally came to him. He squinted his eyes in pain as his shoulder throbbed some more, but he didn’t mind it. He just needed to get the goal and score.

He didn’t notice Jito block him.

He crashed into the huge guy and he was sent to the ground again.

He was in pain, he knew that. He wanted to stand up from he couldn’t. No matter how much force he uses, his body just would listen.

Maybe it was right, he couldn’t do anything anymore. No matter what he did, Jito was there to block it.

_Is that all you can do Tsubasa?_

Was that- was that Santana’s voice?

_Come on Tsubasa, you said you would come back here better than ever!_

Pepe?

_B-but Jito-_

_But what?_

Roberto?

_You have the Drive Shoot ain’t ya? You’re not going to be able to do it if you don’t try. Or is it because you can’t?_

Of course he can, he was Oozora Tsubasa.

He opened his eyes and sat up, ignoring the pain he felt.

“Tsubasa!” his friends exclaimed in worry.

“I’m alright,” he told them. Then he turned to Takano. “Buchou, can you give me the ball once the whistle rings.”

“Are you sure, Tsubasa? Your shoulder-“

He ignored his teammates’ concerned statements and stared at his captain with determination.

“All right,” Takano-buchou conceded. “You look like you have a plan. I’m going to trust you then.”

He smiled and nodded. His teammates still looked concerned, but went along the two and they went to their places.

His hand directed itself to find the charm on his neck. The charm she made for all of them, for her boys. He turned to the stands and saw her easily, their eyes making contact.

She was worried, he knew. But he gave her reassuring nod and a smile. She nodded in return, but didn’t smile back. But he knew, he was sure, that she believed in him.

_I know you can do it._

The whistle blew once again and the ball was in his possession. He ran pass everyone that tried to block him again. He prepared himself for Jito moved passed him towards the goal.

It was now or never.

He prepared himself to shoot the Drive Shoot, and soon hit the ball.

Everyone watched as it soared in sky, and he almost thought he couldn’t manage to do it again, but it the ball suddenly swooped downwards, surprising everyone as they scored a goal.

The whistle resounded as his teammates gathered around him to celebrate. He could almost ignore the pain in shoulder.

He turned towards the stands again, and he felt even more joy seeing the smile return to her face.

They scored three more goals after that. They won 4-3. They were going to the semifinals.

End Chapter


	17. Semifinals

Chapter 17: Semifinals

They were back in the doctor’s office. The doctor was having a last minute check up on his shoulder and she figured she as well tag along, seeing that he would just tell everyone that everything’s fine even if the doctor told him that it was worse that.

So here she was standing in her soccer sweatshirt and pants as she waited for the doctor to finish evaluating his injuries. Her game wasn’t until about 45 minutes at the other stadium. Ayame went with the boys to watch the Toho game, which was about to end if the clock in the room was right.

She noticed him flinch as the doctor pressed a point on his arm.

“Aren’t you a tough guy,” the doctor remarked as he put more bandages around his shoulder. “Normally, people would be screaming by now.”

Tsubasa made a sideways glance at her with a teasing smirk on his face. “I can’t be showing how unmanly I am before a girl, doctor.”

She rolled her eyes at his statement. “Ugh, just shut up and get yourself fix.”

The doctor laughed at their banter and turned towards her. “Ah you youngsters make me laugh damn much. Can you just press right here?”

“Sure thing,” she answered as she pressed on the spot the doctor told her too. She felt her heart speed up again, but she ignored it because she didn’t to feel like a hormonal teenager right now. She was helping him get better damnit.

“So, you guys have your semifinals too right?” he asked.

“Yup, but’s not until later,” she answered, careful to not get in the way of the doctor. “Akane-buchou gave me permission to see you guys and isn’t expecting Ayame and me until thirty minutes before our match starts. We’ll probably be gone before your guys’ game starts.”

“Right,” he said as she separated from him. The doctor inspecting his work once again to see if he missed a spot.

“Tsubasa!” the door opened and in came the boys, Ayame walking lazily behind them.

“Toho just beat South Uwa and they’re definitely in the finals,” they informed him as Ayame walked to stand beside her.

“Hyuuga told me that he was expecting us in the finals,” Wakabayashi added.

He smiled up to them. “Then we just have to win this match then. We can’t ruin his expectations now, can we?”

“Right!” they agreed.

“Or maybe because you promised Daichi that you would play his Kojiro-nii-chan in the finals,” Ayame yawned. “You just didn’t want to break your promise to him.”

“… And that too,” Tsubasa added. “I don’t really want Daichi running to me crying. It’s hard making him stop.”

The whole room erupted in laughter from what he said. She didn’t exactly know what they mean because Daichi runs to her whenever he’s so upset but she could always stop him. Weird.

“You’re all set,” the doctor said. “That’s all I can do for you.”

“Thank you, doctor,” he said. “But can I ask for a favor? Can you write ‘must win’ right here?” he pointed at his shoulder.

“Huh,” the doctor said as he got out a permanent marker. “Sure thing,” he answered but then he looked at her and offered the pen to her. “But I’m sure this young lady here would be better doing it. Everything is better with love, right?” The doctor said as he gave her a wink.

“D-doctor!” she exclaimed in embarrassment as she knew that everyone in the room was giving her knowing smiles and sly smirks. She only glared at them in return.

“Alright,” she sighed as she took the pen and walked closer to him. “Here?” she asked as she pointed at one spot. He nodded and she took off the cap on the marker and wrote on his bandages.

“’Absolute Victory’” he mused as he read the writings. “I thought I said ‘must win’.”

She shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly. “I thought that was better.”

He smiled. “You’re right,” he said. “It sounds way better.”

She smiled back. “Now get out of here,” she told the boys. “Don’t make Furano and Matsuyama-kun wait. And don’t show your face to me if you lose, you here?” she added teasingly. “Nankatsu is going to get both National Titles this year.”

They grumbled and complained but they all went out of the room agreeing to her statement.

“I’m going ahead,” Ayame called out as she went the opposite direction. “I’ll meet you outside.”

She nodded her head. “I’ll be right behind you!”

Her cousin didn’t look back, but raised her hand to tell she heard her.

That left the two of them again.

Now, the awkward silence start. Well, maybe on her part. She remembered what she did when they were last alone to together and she just wanted to hide herself under a rock just reminding herself of what she did.

How fuck did she even have the courage to just ran up to him and hug him?

“So,” she started as she played with her sweatshirt’s drawstrings. “Take care out there, okay?”

“I will,” he said. They stared at each other for a long time, neither of them speaking. She thought she needed to say something but, she couldn’t find what to say.

“I, um,” she played with the hem of her sweatshirt this time. “I better go. Ayame’s probably getting irritated by now and we need to be with the others soon.”

“Oh, uh, sure,” he replied as he scratch the back of his neck.

“I’ll see you guys later,” she said as she turned around to walk out of the stadium.

“Sanae-chan!” she heard him call out to her. She turned back to him and watched as he looked to be contemplating something.

“I- good luck out there,” he finally decided to say.

She smiled at him. “Hey, don’t worry about us,” she assured, “I told you, didn’t I? Nankatsu would be bringing both National Titles home this year. We’ll be fine.”

That made him smile. “You’re right,” he nodded. “We will definitely win both Nationals.”

She smiled even wider. “And you better believe it,” she said.

She gave him one last wave before she finally left. They both knew that both of their teams would try their hardest to make that come true.

She might be going to worry for them in this match, but for now she has a game to win.

Their match from Furano ended quite splendidly, and he had fun throughout the whole game. Matsuyama and his team were great opponents. They gave it everything they got, which gave them all a hard time getting a goal. He knew that they were hard workers and he respected them for it. Their team got along quite well. Though, it seemed they were already buddies since junior high when the guys competed with the first years of Furano High. Their first year manager also seemed to be great friends with Sanae so that might also helped build their friendship. She was quite the friendly person.

The guys and the others from Furano even had a contest on whose good luck charms were better, considering they were wearing headbands around their heads. They said it was made by their manager, Fujisawa-san. It was supposed to be her way showing her support.

_“That’s awesome guys,” Taki remarked. “But we have one too. See,” he took her pendant from under his shirt, showing it off for the guys in Furano. “I think ours is better.”_

_“I- I don’t you should have said that Taki-kun,” he chided lightly. “That’s a little bit rude.”_

_“Are you telling me you’re embarrassed by Anego’s charm?” Taki asked disbelievingly. All his other friends seemed to have the same reaction as Taki and even the senpai-tachi seemed to be expecting his answer._

_Oh shit._

_“W-what? No! I’m not embarrassed by it! I’m even wearing it ri-“_

_“How could you? When she worked so hard to make this for us. Oh, wait until she finds out about this.”_

_“Guys!”_

_“’Anego Boys’?” one of the players from Furano scoffed after he read the writing on the charm. “What kind of name is that?”_

_“Guys,” Mastsuyama chastised his teammates, “don’t be li-“_

_“Don’t make fun of Anego’s hard work!” Kisugi defended. “She poured all her blood, sweat, and tears making this!”_

_“But didn’t Anego say this didn’t take long for her to make?” Misaki, who stood between him and Wakabayashi, whispered to the both of them. Wakabayashi gave Misaki a look that conveyed, “the fuck should I know?”_

_“Oh yeah?” the members of Furano challenged. “Well, Fujisawa worked on our headbands all night long! She worked hard making them, and they are better than your stupid charms!”_

_“Guys!” Matsuyama scolded. “Don’t say that about Nakaza-“_

_“Well, I would like to know that I’ve been wearing this charm for more than three years now, therefore it is so much better,” Izawa finally joined in. “I’m not going to let that insult slide.”_

_“Well, we’re not letting that insult to Fujisawa’s hard work slide either!”_

_“Oh yeah? Bring it then?”_

_“You’re on!”_

_They could only watch in exasperation and sigh in defeat as their teammates glared at each other._

_“Why are we friends with such idiots?” Wakabayashi asked as he shook his head._

_“Just let them be,” Misaki said, “Anego does have a big part in their lives. They have a lot of respect for her and can’t stand anyone badmouthing her.”_

_Wakabayashi only sighed again as he chuckled. He turned towards Matsuyama, who also looked exasperated by his teammates._

_“Sorry about them,” he apologized to Matsuyama. “They just get a little overboard when it comes to Sanae-chan.”_

_“Me too,” Matsuyama turned to him with an apologetic smile. “Fujisawa’s been with us as long as Nakazawa-san is to them. Overprotective doesn’t even begin to describe them when it comes to Fujisawa.”_

_“Yeah, same here,” he agreed, then his eyes went towards the headband on the other guy’s head. “The headband looks great by the way. You can see Fujisawa-san really did work hard on it.”_

_“Thank you,” Matsuyama said as he felt for the headband. “The charm Nakazawa-san made looks cool too. She definitely made it with all her heart. Where is she by the way? I don’t seem to her around or hear her for that matter.”_

_“Oh, she’s at her own semifinals at another stadium,” he answered, unconsciously feeling the charm under his shirt._

_“Oh yeah, the girls did have the Nationals the same times as us,” he remarked._

_“Yeah,” he said._

_Then Matsuyama gave him a challenging smile. “So about the good luck charms,” he started. “Why don’t we settle that on the field? Though I’m sure Fujisawa’s headband will help us win this match._

_“Maybe,” he said in a smug smile. “But these charms carry Sanae-chan’s unending support and we’re definitely not putting it to waste.”_

_Matsuyama offered his hand for him to shake. “May the best charm win?”_

_Tsubasa shook his hand. “Yes.”_

Well, they won the match, but he didn’t get to talk to Matsuyama-kun after that. He rushed off out of the stadium. Apparently Fujisawa-san was leaving for France on that same day and Matsuyama-kun had something to tell her.

He wasn’t one to pry so he didn’t ask any more about it. Besides, his friends dragged him towards the other stadium where the girls were supposed to be playing. Apparently if they run fast enough, they could make it to the beginning of their overtime. They didn’t even bother changing and just bolted out of their stadium as fast as they could. Wakabayashi-kun grumbled along the way, but he was running as fast as the other guys.

He didn’t want to admit, but he wanted to see her play again, even if just for a small while.

They arrived to see their other friends holding out the banner, but they all had concerned expression on their faces. They turned to where they were looking and saw both her and Ayame having people wrap one of their legs in athletic tape. Those two girls didn’t seem to look concerned at all as they chatted animatedly with their coach.

“What happened?” Taki asked as they moved towards their friends.

“Anego and Ayame landed horribly as they tried to battle for the ball in the air just before the second half ended. They wanted to at least score another goal in the last minute but that happened instead,” Morisaki explained. He left in their second half to watch the girls’ half instead.

He turned towards her, and watched as she pulled up her socks back up her knees, covering the tape. The speaker announced that extra time would start shortly and the two girls stood up, grabbing onto Shiori’s hands who offered them.

“Anego!” His friends shouted.

She turned around to face them and he couldn’t understand how in the world she could look so unconcerned over her injury.

“Oh hey,” she greeted them with a huge smile. “You guys finally had your match done? Did you guys win like I wanted?”

“Yeah,” Kisugi answered. “But that’s not what I wanted to ask about? How’s your leg? Are you alright?”

“Oh that?” she gestured to her right leg, “Don’t worry about it. It’s not that bad. You know those Toho girls. They don’t ever want to lose.”

“They had to wrap you in athletic tape!”

“Which I can take off right after the match,” she rebutted. “I’m telling I’ll be fine. It’s not as bad as Tsubasa-kun’s. Which, by the way,” then she turned to him, “how’s the shoulder?”

“It throbbed, a little,” he said.

“We had to go back to the doctor after the second half,” Wakabayashi told her bluntly. Tsubasa gave his friend a dirty look.

“Tsubasa-kun,” she gave him a small glare.

“What?” he tried to defend himself. “We won in the end. Besides, aren’t you injured yourself?”

She sighed and shook her head. “We’ll talk about this later. Yes, even my injury. But I have to go, I have some Toho butt to kick.”

Unluckily, there was a nearby Toho player getting out of their bench area and into the field.

“I heard that,” she retorted as she walked past Sanae.

Sanae turned to her with a cheeky smile. “What are you going to do about it, Asaki?” she asked.

“Kick your ass back,” she answered as she continued to back, not even looking back to her. “You should start going to the field. The whistle’s about to ring.”

Sanae replied by sticking her tongue out at the Toho player.

”Well, you heard the queen,” she said teasingly. “I’ll see you guys later.”

They called out well wishes to her as she ran back to the field. He knew his friends were worried about her. He was quite worried as well. But seeing her laugh and smile with Ayame and another girl from Toho, he thought that maybe they didn’t have to worry.

It’s her they were going to talk about.

If she said that it’s no problem, then it was no problem. She would definitely win them the game.

The whistle blew again, starting the game and she ran.

His breath hitched.

She looked very beautiful with those little wings.

End Chapter


	18. Champions

Chapter 18: Champions

She wiped the sweat off from her face using her shirt. Her heart was beating fast and chest heaved up and down from the lack of oxygen. Her muscles were aching from playing for a long time now, and the injury she got from their semifinal match was bothering her a little, but it wasn’t that bad.

The second half started seven minutes ago, and still neither teams have scored a point yet. Junko-senpai was up for a corner kick and they were all just waiting for her to hit it. She was right in the middle of the penalty area, preparing for a chance to score a goal.

Junko dropped her hand and kicked the ball. It soared right above them and the people around her jumped to do something with the ball. Luckily, she jumped high enough to do a header and directed the ball to Shiori. Her teammate shot and the goalkeeper was too late to save it.

The shrill ring of the whistle sounded and they finally scored the first goal of their game.

Everyone of their team ran towards their short pig-tailed teammate and praise her for the goal, that if they play it right, might win them Nationals.

She turned towards the clock, if they didn’t have to play for overtime, then she might be able to make it. She might be able to see the boys’ game in their last minutes.

After a few moments, they went back to their places. The ball was in there hands, and when the whistle blew, they attacked.

Now that she thought about it, they were lucky to even be able to score against this team. Kitagawa Academy has been holding the National title for two years straight, and they wanted this to be their third year. Especially since the one they were waiting for one person from the junior high girls’ league, Hiyazaki Saya, was finally there.

She was said to be a soccer prodigy, just like him. Ever since she was young, she’s been playing on the field, manipulating the ball with great precision and total control. Almost all the matches she played won, earning total victory for her team.

Except one.

She played against the female soccer genius once, in the semifinal of her third year’s National Tournament. That was her first year back from the United States. She wanted to go there to gain more experience as a soccer player. And when she thought she gained enough she went back to Japan to play for Kitagawa Academy.

When they met on the field, Hiyazaki thought she could defeat Nankatsu easily and take the National title to KitaGaku. She thought that Nankatsu didn’t deserve the title because they didn’t look that strong at all. That Japanese players didn’t have the same talent and strength as those foreigners she played against when she was in the United States, questioning her decision on why she even came back at all.

Ayame was about to talk her off, but she stopped her cousin and spoke to Hiyazaki instead.

 _“You were supposed to come back for one reason, Hiyazaki-san,”_ she remembered telling her that, _“to watch this team, MY team, who was strong enough to hold onto this title for two straight years, get that title again for the third year in a row.”_

That was the first time she played really seriously.

They won the game 4-0.

She humiliated Hiyazaki Saya, but she was aggravating her so much at the time and when she’s pissed, she usually tend to not think of what she was doing. She honest to god wanted to say sorry, but she shook her apologies away and vowed that she would defeat her someone, no matter how long it took.

They finally met again today in the finals. Ayame and Shiori were weary of her, but she shook them off. She tried to exchange pleasantries to Hiyazaki, but the girl only glared at her, saying that she was going to defeat her right then.

Sorry, Hiyazaki, but that wouldn’t happen right now. They had to win Nationals.

The ball was with her and Hiyazaki was there to block her. She tried to find if anyone was free, but they were all marked. Damnit.

“There’s no one to pass to Nakazawa,” Hiyazaki smirked as she tried to steal the ball from her.

“Oh so now you talk to me,” she couldn’t help but retort spitefully. She was still defending the ball from her. She needed to think of a way to get past her quickly.“I thought you hated me?”

“I do!” she spat angrily as she attacked more aggressively. “I hate you with all my soul.”

“Well, unfortunately for you,” she said. “I don’t.”

She only glared at her and tried to get the ball away from her more. Come on, Sanae think. There has to be a way get around her.

“You’re teammates are all blocked, and they are all tired,” Hiyazaki started, “Just give up the ball.”

There has to be something she could d-

Wait, she could try that. She only saw him doing that a few times but maybe she could do it. Though, what if she miscalculated the power she gave it?

But she wouldn’t know until she tries.

“Sorry,” she said, “but not today.”

With that, she kicked the ball upwards with her heel and she took advantage of her shock to run pass her. The ball landed right in front of her and she took off. She didn’t look back to see whether Hiyazaki was following her. She needed to get to the goal. That was the only thing on her mind.

She readied herself to kick the ball and when she knew where the goalie was going to jump, she moved.

The whistle resounded to tell of another goal for Nankatsu, as well as the end of the second half.

She stared at the ball as it rolled inside the net. The next thing she knew, the roar of the crowd entered her ears and Ayame jumping on her back as she stumbled forwards to steady both of them. Soon after that, she was surrounded by all her teammates.

“We won!” she heard Ayame scream in her ear. “We fucking won!”

“We did it!”

“Guys we won!”

“We’re the National Champions!”

That finally registered in her head.

“We won?” she asked stupidly. “Oh my god, we won!”

They all cheered and laughed again. She didn’t know why, but her eyes suddenly started to blur and she felt something wet run down her cheeks. Her face hurt from smiling too much and she finally to feel all the pain her body ignored before.

She barely heard the speaker announced that they won, because she was just too damn happy she finally made the dream of the people she looked up to, happen.

The match finally ended, and they won.

That woke her up from her joyful stupor.

The match finally ended.

She looked towards a nearby clock to see the time.

She could make it.

She looked back towards her teammates.

“We need to be somewhere don’t we?” Akane-buchou stated. All her teammates wore knowing smiles on their faces.

“Go,” Ayame told her. “I’ll get your stuff. We’ll catch up to you.”

She looked back towards her other teammates who shared encouraging grins.

“Thank you!” she said to them and ran out of the field, passing by Hiyazaki, who seemed to have wanted to talk to her.

“Where is she going?” she asked the other players of Nankatsu.

“A group of idiots need her,” Ayame answered as she stood beside her.

“Idiots?”

“She meant our boys team,” Shiori explained. “They have their finals today as well, and Sanae-chan has precious friends playing today.”

“Yeah, and one of them injured his shoulder so she’s worried sick about him,” Ayame snorted then turned to Hiyazaki. “If you were here to tell her you hated how she played today because she didn’t seem into it, then that’s it. That’s the reason why you thought she was distracted.”

“But it didn’t really affect her that much, Hiyazaki-san,” Shirori told her. “When she was fighting for the ball with you, she was one hundred percent into it. She’s not going to be rude and look over your determination to defeat her. She’s too noble for that.”

“But why would she care about the boys’ team?” Hiyazaki asked. “A boy shouldn’t affect her that much. I doubt he’s that good of a soccer player anyway.”

“Oh trust me, he’s not just good, he’s amazing,” Ayame said. "And Sanae’s too smitten and crazy about him that she would do everything she can that he doesn’t ruin his chances of being the best in the world because he was being an idiot. And his teammates can’t do a simple thing right without her.”

“That’s not true, Aya-chan!”

“Calm down, I’m kidding. Sheesh,” Ayame said as she started to walk away.

Shiori turned towards the KitaGaku player. “You should come see it, Hiyazaki-san. I think you would like watching the boys’ match.”

“I-I’ll see,” Hiyazaki replied.

“Well, I need to be going now if we want to see the end of the match. Ja ne!” With that Shiori left to join her teammates into rushing to the boys’ match.

Those boys better win. It’s not fun celebrating victory without them.

* * *

She arrived to just in time to see Tsubasa score the third goal for Nankatsu. They managed to catch up ti Toho, who now only led by one point. Just one more point and they could make it even. But when she looked back at the clock, there was barely anytime left. She turned back to Tsubasa and she just knew that his shoulder was hurting like hell.

She knew about the decision to have him play on the second half. The boys all told her when she asked what his diagnosis was when they brought him to a physical therapist. She told him she wasn’t even sure if she should even be playing today after all, but he wouldn’t have any of it and said he will definitely play. She knew she could never argue against him when he already made his mind.

“Anee-chan!”

Daichi called out to her. She turned to where she heard his voice and located the Oozora’s quickly. The oldest male Oozora finally came home in the few days they were out of Nankatsu just to watch his oldest son play in Nationals for the first time. She could just imagine his worry when he found out Tsubasa’s injured.

“How is he?” She asked as she took a seat beside the Oozora matriarch.

“He’s… not quite well,” Oozora-san answered. “His shoulder seems to be bothering him too much.”

They turned back towards the field to see Tsubasa taking his hand off his shoulder, and standing up. That was the only thing she needed to know that his shoulder is worse than ever.

“He shouldn’t have played today,” she muttered to herself. “That idiot.”

“Don’t beat yourself up too much, Sanae-chan,” Mr. Oozora told her. “You know he wouldn’t even listen. He’ll still play.”

She could only nod slowly as they watched him race past the Toho team, Taki-kun and Misaki-kun following close by. She was clutching her shorts too tightly, she knew her knuckles were turning white.

All four of them jumped up as he fell down from his duel with Hyuuga-kun.

“Tsubasa!”

“Tsubasa-kun!”

“Onii-chan!”

He was on the ground for a few seconds. Seconds that felt too long for them.

They all finally managed to breathe a sigh of relief when he got up just as Takano-senpai passed the ball towards him. She caught a glimpse of the referee, who seemed to be ready to signal to end the second half.

No. Just let him score one more time. Just one more time, please.

She took a huge breath when he prepared to shoot, her hands clenched tightly together on top of her lap. The whistle was already on the referee’s mouth, preparing to blow.

She watched tensely as he kicked the ball towards the goal. Wakashimazu-kun went to the direction where the ball headed, but it suddenly did a curve and went the other way.

The ball hit the net. The whistle rang.

They were going into extra time.

She finally released her breath in relief.

Daichi was cheering for his brother, as well as his parents. They were proud of him, she knew, because she was proud of him too.

She couldn’t help the smile of her face when the team gathered around him to celebrate their point. But it didn’t last long.

The boys were suddenly panicking, and they were leading to the ground. They were calling out his name in hysterics and suddenly, Misaki turned to officials and called for a stretcher.

Her heart stopped for a moment, and before she knew it, she got up from her seat and bolted towards the medical room, not hearing Mrs. Oozora calling her name.

She arrived to see them all waiting outside of the room, their faces blank.

They’ve been in this situation before. Except that time, she was wearing a perfectly clean set of clothes instead of her dirty soccer uniform, and there was a supposed to be a scream of pain coming from the other side of the door.

There was none.

She left them again to open the door and went inside the room, the door closing right behind her.

Takano-senpai only gave her a glance from where he stood leaning against the wall before going to ball to staring at the ground, getting pulled back to his thoughts. He was probably thinking of ways to defeat Toho without Tsubasa, but they both knew that it would be close to impossible.

She turned towards the bed and looked at him. His eyes were closed, but she knew, she could feel it, the pain he was in.

She just hoped this wouldn’t lead to the end of his soccer career.

She walked towards the bed and stopped right beside it. She pushed back some of his hair that clung to his forehead gingerly.

He’s such an idiot. A stupid, soccer-obsessed idiot. Why couldn’t he just accept his limits? He practically threw his everything for this game. His career, his dreams, his life. A high school game wasn’t worth risking all of those for.

But, if he wasn’t playing with everything he had, he wouldn’t be the Tsubasa they knew. He wouldn’t be the Tsubasa she was absolutely, irrevocably in love with.

“Nakazawa-chan?”

She turned around to face Takano-senpai, who was giving her an encouraging smile, but she couldn’t give him one back.

“We have to go back for the extra time, now,” he informed her. “Will you take care of him? I figured he’d like to see a more familiar face when he wakes up.”

“Alright,” she mumbled lowly, looking down.

“Hey, chin up,” he told her softly. “It’s not going to be bad,” he assured. “It’s Tsubasa we’re talking about. Even if we just met, I know he’s strong. He’ll be able to get over this.”

She looked up to see him smiling softly at her. “Yeah, b-but-“

“Believe in him, Nakazawa-chan. Don’t tell me you’re stopping now.”

“No!” she denied. “I’ll always believe in him!”

He patted her shoulder comfortingly, “Then hold onto it.”

She widened her eyes, and slapped herself mentally.

This was Oozora Tsubasa. He was the best soccer player she knew. He already played in Brazil and was coached by Roberto Hongo himself. He never gave up, and right now wouldn’t be the first time.

“Yes!” She exclaimed, her usual cheerfulness was back. All needed was to wait for him to wake up, and maybe scold him a little, because she knew he will get back up and fight again.

“There’s that smile I was looking for,” Takano-senpai said. “You looked weird without it.”

“Senpai,” she rolled her eyes, but she was still smiling.

“Well, I better go,” he told her. “I have to explain to my stubborn teammates that we can’t stay out here forever. We have a match to win.”

“I’ll go with you,” she said, “The boys will probably be stupid enough to reason with you on why they definitely need to stay here. I’ll beat some sense into them.”

“… That would be very much appreciated.”

They opened the door to be greeted by concerned faces. Right away, they were bombarded by questions, all asking about his welfare.

“He’s… stable,” Takano-senpai answered. “He hasn’t woken up yet.”

Again, they were bombarded by request to come and see him, but one glare from her shut them all up.

“I know you guys are worried for Oozora, and I am too, but we can’t exactly dilly dally here. We need to go back and play the extra time.”

This time, they were met by complaints. That’s where she came in.

“Will all of you shut up for a second?” she commanded, crossing her arms.

“Anego,” her boys muttered in defeat.

“I know Tsubasa’s not doing great right now-“

“He’s unconscious!” Izawa interrupted. She directed her glare at him and it quickly shut him up.

“But you have to go out there,” she told them. “And before any of you say anything about Tsubasa, I know. I saw how he is, you don’t have to repeat it again.”

She took a deep breath. She noticed from the corner of her eyes, Takano-senpai and the other upperclassmen leaving, trusting this stubborn first years in her hands.

“Tsubasa is important to all of us, but this match is important to him. This is his first year back from Brazil and also the first time he played with you guys, and reaching Nationals no less. He did everything he can to make that tie possible because he wanted to win this not just for him, but for you guys as well. A team can’t play with just five people. Don’t let this game go to waste. Don’t let this be the end for the third years. Don’t throw away all of Tsubasa’s hard work to get you here.”

She looked around the faces of her boys, who refused to meet her eyes.

“Do it for everyone that supports you. Do it for our senpai-tachi. Do it for Tsubasa.”

They were envelope in silence and she released a sigh through her nose. It’s all on them now.

“You’re right,” Wakabayashi broke the silence as he looked up towards her. “Anego’s right. We can’t let all of this go to waste. We’ve worked hard for this.”

“Yeah,” Misaki agreed. “This is Wakabayashi-kun’s and my first year back in Japan, playing with all of you guys. I’m surprise I’m even playing in the finals of Nationals. I think we should know how Tsubasa-kun feels. It would be horrible if we didn’t see this to the end.”

The three other first years finally said their agreements, each with their own smile and a reason to win this game.

“See,” she interrupted, “There’s more than enough reasons to win this match. Don’t let go now. Take this chance and hold onto it, because it might never appear again.”

They all agreed with her, their spirits renewed. She the smile on her face was a sign, a sign of how much she was proud of them.

“We’ll leave Tsubasa in your hands then, Anego?” Wakabayashi-kun asked as he fixed his hand.

“Of course,” she answered. “What else am I supposed to do? I still have to give him a piece of my mind when he wakes up. He passed his recklessness quota days ago.”

“You know if Ishizaki was here, he would tell you that you sound like his girlfriend already,” Taki remarked cheekily.

She felt the blood flow to her face and glared at him. “Well, too bad he isn’t,” she replied hotly.

“But I am and I think you’re more of a wife now,” Wakabayashi said coolly.

That earned a snicker from everyone around them.

“Shut up!” She exclaimed, her face was really red now. She could feel the heat all over her head.

They just laughed at her embarrassment. Oh just they wait, she’ll get her revenge soon.

“We better be going,” Misaki told everyone who nodded in agreement.

“We’ll see you then, Anego,” Kisugi said as they started to leave.

“When Tsubasa wakes up, tell him not to worry,” Izawa told her.

“Tell him to just sit tight and rest,” Taki added.

“We’ll take care of this match,” Misaki said.

“Because we’ll definitely win,” Wakabayashi ended. “Let’s go everyone!”

They cheered and started to run back to the field, leaving her all alone.

She smiled as she watched their forms disappear from her view. When she couldn’t see them anymore, she went back in the room.

“They’re good children,” the doctor told her once she was in and proceeded to walk to stand beside his bed. “He’s lucky to have friends like them,” he gestured to Tsubasa, who was still unconscious.

“Yeah,” she agreed as she pushed his bangs away from his face again. “He is.”

“He’s even luckier to have such a young lady like you,” he added.

“Doc!” she exclaimed in embarrassment. What is it with people and teasing her about their non-existing romantic relationship? It’s not like he’ll notice her feelings anyway. And she was fine with that.

“Hey, that’s what I see,” the doctor continued to tease. “Now why don’t you take a seat? He should be out for a while.”

She nodded and sat on the chair nearby the bed. She didn’t even think about with, nor notice it, but her hand laced itself to his, thinking that a little physical contact would comfort him.

She didn’t notice it, but he gave her hand a light squeeze.

The doctor went back to want he was doing while she turned towards the clock on the corner. The extra time should have started by now, and Nankatsu was playing with only ten members, but she knew all of them were playing hard, throwing everything they’ve got for this game.

She turned towards him, a soft look on her face.

They’re playing hard just for him, because they didn’t want to disappoint him. They were going to keep strong in this 20 minutes for him.

_You’ll wake up soon right, Tsubasa-kun?_

She could only squeezed his hand to send her unspoken wish.

Minutes past as she and the doctor stayed alert for any signs of him starting to wake. She looked up to the clock and saw that the first half of extra time was almost over. She hoped that Toho hasn’t scored any goal and that they’re still keeping strong.

Just 11 more minutes. Just 11 more minutes and their done.

She heard a groan from beside her and she immediately whipped her head to look at him.

He was waking up!

She unconsciously took her hand away from him and stood up, her chair screeching against the floor. That must have caught the doctor’s attention, as he turned towards Tsubasa.

When he opened his eyes, she sighed in relief.

“W-where am I?” he mumbled groggily as he blinked his eyes.

“The infirmary,” she answered softly.

“The game?” he asked as he sat up and he immediately clutched his shoulder, probably from the pain. She released a breath through her nose. Trust him to think about the match than his wellbeing.

“They were extended for an overtime,” the doctor explained.

“I see,” he replied as he threw the covers off and stood up from the bed, taking his folded jersey with him. He put it on as he walked towards the door.

“H-hey where do you think you’re going?” The doctor asked in a panic.

“The field,” he replied, stopping in his tracks to turn to them seriously. “My team is waiting for me.”

“What?” she exclaimed disbelievingly. “But, Tsubasa-kun, you- your-“

“I can’t guarantee your recovery if you continue to play!” the doctor reasoned. “You might not be able to play soccer after this!”

Tsubasa only stared at him, before turning and walked out of the door.

“Tsubasa-kun!” she screamed as she followed him out of the door. “Get back here!”

She didn’t know whether he was purposely ignoring her or he was just so focused to get to the field he couldn’t hear her.

“Goddamnit Tsubasa, look at me!” she screamed in frustration.

That was when he finally turned to her.

“You can’t go back out there!” she said as she walked closer to him. “You heard the doctor! You might not be able to play soccer after this.”

“My team needs me,” he argued calmly.

“And they know how much you need to recover,” she argued. “They know how much being able to play is important to you. They know how much this game is important for you.”

She could feel herself start to choke and her eyes were starting to blur.

“If you continue doing this, your shoulder,” she sobbed. “J-just stop trying to be strong, will you? Your dream, your hopes, everything will end if you get out there. Soccer is your everything! Please don’t throw everything away for this. Please. You have so much potential, Tsubasa. You’re in for amazing things in the future. I don’t know what I’ll do if I saw you never reaching your dreams. I-“

There was a pair of arms wrapping around her and she was suddenly enveloped by his smell.

“Thank you,” he whispered to her. “I know you’re only looking out for me. But this is my decision.”

“But-“

“I know,” he said. “My shoulder hurts like shit, and I’ll doing everything I can to ignore it because I know people like you are out there, cheering and supporting for Nankatsu, hoping with all their hearts that we win.”

“Then don’t meet their hopes!” she looked up to him, clutching onto his shirt tightly. “They’ll understand! You have two more years to win Nationals.”

“But then I would be wasting your support,” he replied. “I would be abandoning all those people out there who wants us to win. I would be abandoning you. You’re even here with me, even though you don’t have to be. I can’t just throw that away.”

“You’ll have my support forever,” she countered, her voice sounding desperate. “Even if you don’t play for the extra time and lose, I’ll always support you!”

“And I want to repay that,” he said. “I want to repay you not just for today, but for all those years when I was gone and cheering for my friends. So please, let me get back out there and repay you.”

She only choked again and wrapped her arms around him tighter.

* * *

She went back to her seat and wasn’t surprised to see her teammates sitting by the Oozora’s. Though she was surprised to see some of the dark green jerseys of KitaGaku sitting by them, even more so when she spied Hiyazaki of all people sitting beside Shiori.

“Anee-chan!” Daichi exclaimed as he waved her over. She waved back and took the seat he gave up as he sat on her lap. She heard the crowd roar in excitement. Tsubasa was finally back in the game, even if there was only about ten minutes left in the game.

“’Sup, dear cousin of mine,” Ayame tapped her on shoulder. “You alright?”

She turned to her with a slight sniff. “Yeah,” she answered.

“Have you been crying?” Ayame asked in concern. “Because injury or not, I will kick Tsubasa’s ass if he did something wrong to you.”

“Don’t swear in front of Daichi!” she chided her cousin as she covered Daichi’s ears with her hands, who didn’t seem to hear anything as he continued to watch the game.

“Sorry,” Ayame apologized. “But seriously, what did he do to you?”

“Nothing,” she answered as she looked away from her to watch him play on the field. “I just being an idiot.”

“I’m not convinced,” Ayame pushed on.

She sighed and turned back to her cousin. “I’ll tell you later, okay?” she said. “But for now, I want to watch the game.”

“Fine,” Ayame conceded as they turned back to watch the match.

She tried so hard to not squeeze Daichi when he hit the goal post from returning Hyuuga’s shot. Every time, he blocked Hyuuga’s shot, she could feel her heart skip a beat. But she has to stay strong. She promised him that she would believe in, and right now, that’s the only thing she could do.

She almost stopped breathing when he fell yet again from blocking Hyuuga’s overhead shot. But it didn’t end there.

He stood up, forcing his legs to run after the ball.

 _Please stop,_ she thought, her eyes were starting to water again. _It’s okay now. The game’s almost over. Just stop._

He was still running, and her chest was starting to hurt. She was forcing back a sob as she watched him continue on. She hated this, knowing that she couldn’t do anything to help him out of his pain.

He finally reached the ball, and he was preparing to shoot, but Hyuuga kicked it just as he did.

The ball flew upwards, and the whistle blew.

It was finally over. Nankatsu tied with Toho as National Champions.

The crowd began to cheer again, and finally, finally she could breathe again. She felt her tears finally run down her cheeks but she was beaming.

Daichi stood up from her lap and ran to give his parents a hug, happy for their brother’s amazing play throughout the whole time. Mrs. Oozora’s probably crying like her now.

Ayame gave her a hug from her seat above her and she turned towards her cousin, her huge smile on her face as the tears continued to stream down her cheeks.

Ayame only beamed at her back.

She returned her attention back to the field as the crowd louder this time.

She never thought that he never looked any weirder, holding the Victory Flag and wearing Hyuuga-kun’s Toho jersey.

He turned to face her, and their eyes met. She didn’t think their smiles could get any bigger.

She knew that she couldn’t stop falling for him even more.

End Chapter


	19. Celebrations

Chapter 19: Celebrations

They just announced the winners of both the Girls’ Tournament and Boys’ Tournament. Since they, well, her mostly, high tailed out of their stadium right after their match, they couldn’t announce the winners of the Girls’ Tournament. When the association figured out that they went to the Boys’ match, well this happened instead.

“And now, here are the players chosen to represent the U-16 All Japan International Junior Youth Team in France are:” the announcer spoke.

Well, that was new. She wasn’t exactly keeping up with soccer politics so she had no idea that they have were going to have that this year. But she was sure that the association was scouting for young players all over Japan. She have that one man watching some of the boys play since they were in junior high (or maybe even earlier). If she remembered correctly, he was called Katagiri.

He then listed off the people joining the team.

They weren’t exactly surprised when they heard who were chosen. It was a little surprising to hear that Tsubasa-kun and Misaki-kun were chosen, since she was sure they would have picked those they were scouting ever since their junior high. Well, judging by how they played in this tournament, they did play splendidly.

What shocked them though, was that Wakabayashi-kun didn’t get chosen at all. She turned towards the goalkeeper, who seemed to be calm about this. She saw Tsubasa doing the same thing, but she shrugged after a few moments. Wakabayashi-kun probably had a reason why he wasn’t quite surprised at all.

And he did. When the ceremony was the over, they were quick to drill him of questions about what he thought of the decisions and why he wasn’t chosen.

 _“My team back in Germany asked me for a favor,”_ she remembered him telling them. _“I told them I can play for them for a short time, just until summer ends. I asked them to wait until Nationals was over and I can go back to them. I’m leaving in three days.”_

The others seemed to have believed his reason easily, but when she turned to Shiori, she didn’t seem convinced.

See, she might be their team’s bubbly center forward, but her judgment and instincts were sharp. If it wasn’t for her quick decisions, then the team’s chances for Nationals would have dropped greatly.

That’s why when the girl looks skeptical about something, they usually trusted it, along with the ball.

Well, Shiori did have the tendency to ignore what she’s feeling sometimes, and only shrugged her skepticism over Wakabayashi-kun’s reason.

So after that, they finally decided to celebrate their victory tomorrow afternoon, just before they all go back to Nankatsu. It was a good thing they were all staying near to a hotel that their (Ayame and hers) grandfather owned and got them a reservation at one of the restaurants in there. The yakiniku place which they both loved when they spent summer in Tokyo last year at their beloved grandfather’s request.

He reserved the whole place for them seeing that both teams of the school two of his grandchildren attends, won the both National titles. Of course, as usual it was exclusive to family and really really close friends (meaning the other members of “Anego’s Boys”).

She was about to complain about the whole reservation of the place to just them, since the restaurant would probably lose customers (and money) from having to ignore all the other reservations made before theirs were.

 _“Nonsense, Sanae-chan,”_ _their grandfather waved her concerns off from the other line on her phone. “They wouldn’t lose money. I’m paying for it.”_

Again, she was about to complain for him paying for their lunch, but he replied by telling her that he didn’t get the chance to spoil his grandchildren when they were young, and this would finally be his chance.

She finally let him win. She knew that he was just showing that he still loved them, even if he couldn’t find any time to spend with his children and grandchildren.

Besides, when she thought of it, it was a good idea that they got the whole place reserved, considering how rambunctious they could be when they celebrate winning a match. Just imagine how much crazier it would be when they won Nationals.

So here she was with her cousin, standing outside the building where the 24 representatives of the International Junior Youth Team were having a small meeting about their plans, waiting for the three people picked from Nankatsu to come out of the doors so they could go to restaurant and start eating meat.

Hey, shopping with a fashion-obsessed cousin was tiring. Especially when everything she tried on looked perfect on her, but wasn’t satisfied with just one outfit and had to try on at least 13 more outfits and 18 pairs of shoes. Ayame even dragged her to change into a floral dress, which she did find cute but no effort to try it on. But, Ayame being Ayame, had to try it on with a navy blue cardigan and some brown boots. When her cousin thought it was pretty acceptable on her, she ordered her to buy it, to which she could only follow just to get her cousin off her back about wasting such a perfect outfit for her.

In the end, Ayame managed to collect four bags worth of new clothes (she had to stop her from buying more when she reminded her that they still need to pick up the three from the bulding. Ayame stopped, though with a pout) while she only had one.

Thank god for that.

The automatic doors opened and she turned towards them, and not locating the three from the huge group of boys going outside. Huh, what happened to them?

“Yo J-BOYS!” Ayame exclaimed at them. She almost hit her face with her palm. Her cousin lacked tack so much.

See, that was the nickname she came up for them last night when the team all talked and ate so much junk food right before bed. She didn’t know what came into her cousin, but she suddenly said that they should start calling them that since they graduated from being “Anego’s Boys” and was now “Japan’s Boys”. Her teammates agreed wholeheartedly and from then on they called them “J-Boys.”

She just didn’t expect Ayame to call them that in public.

What made it worse was that those idiots would turn around to face them.

“J-Boys?” Hyuuga-kun said in disbelief.

“Is she talking to us?” One of the Tachibana twins asked Wakashimazu, who shrugged his shoulders in confusion.

“Yes, I’m talking to you,” her cousin retorted as she marched towards them in annoyance, she could only follow behind as she tried to massage her head to stop the incoming headache her cousin will put her through.

“Honestly, who did you think I was talking to?” Ayame huffed as she reached them. “You’re the only huge crowd of boys here.”

“Well, excuse us,” the other Tachibana (she thought, she could never tell them apart) replied. “We just didn’t know whether this short girl that we have no idea who she could be was talking to us. Besides we just didn’t notice you by how tiny you are.”

The other twin gave the other one a high five.

Oh boy, Ayame was going about to explode.

“Why you-“

“Okay,” she interrupted before Ayame could go boom. “Hey everyone,” she greeted pleasantly as she walked in front of Ayame. “How’s it going?”

“Oh hey there Anego,” Hyuuga-kun greeted her.

“Hello, Nakazawa-san,” Matsuyama-kun said to her.

“Woah, you guys know her?”

Matsuyama nodded his head. “Nakazawa-san’s a close friend of the Nankatsu team.”

Ayame snorted from behind her, “Close friend? More like their mom.”

She glared at her cousin. “Shut up,” she hissed, but Ayame only smirked at her. She rolled he eyes in exasperation and turned back to the guys.

“Just ignore her,” she told them. “Anyway, how was th-“

“Where are her boys anyway?” Ayame interrupted. “We’ve been waiting for them for ages and I’m hungry.”

She did not have the right to complain! She was the one who had to wake her up so early in the morning and only gave her enough time to change from her pajamas and eat a donut for breakfast.

The other guys looked at each other in confusion again, puzzled about what she was talking about again. How the hell should they know who these boys are?

“Oh,” Matsuyama exclaimed in realization. “Izawa-kun, Taki-kun, Kisugi-kun, and Misaki-kun all stayed behind to wait for Tsubasa-kun. Coach Mikami wanted tell him something.”

“How is it that you know who she was talking about Matsuyama?” Jito asked the Furano player.

“The Nankatsu players showed us this one charm they were wearing right before our match, since we were wearing headbands that time, they just thought it would be right to show theirs to us,” he explained calmly.

Oh my god, those idiots had to them to other people? Someone bury her now.

“It had ‘Anego’s Boys’ written on it,” he added, “I figured that what was Kiseki-san was talking about.”

“’Anego’s Boys?’”

“Specifially her boys,” Hyuuga pointed at her as she jumped from the sudden attention given to her. “Those guys couldn’t function without her.”

“T-that’s not true,” she denied. “They can function without me.”

“Right and Ishizaki’s not bald.”

She was about to retort back, but the boys decided to finally arrive at that time.

“Ah, Anego!” Izawa-kun’s voice drifted to their ears. They all tuned to where his voice came from and saw the five of them walking towards them.

“My point exactly,” Hyuuga-kun smirked as he and Ayame shared a high five.

She only glared at them and stuck her tongue out before turning her attention back to the three who just arrived.

“Hey,” she greeted all them.

“What are you guys doing here?” Izawa-kun asked them.

“Picking you guys up, duh,” Ayame answered. “You probably don’t even know how to get to the hotel without u-“

She smacked her cousin upside the head, who only swore loudly at her.

“What Ayame’s trying to say is,” she started, “We just got done shopping and since we were just close by, we thought we could go to the restaurant together.”

“That’s nice of you guys,” Misaki-kun told them gratefully. “Thanks.”

“No problem,” she replied pleasantly.

“Restaurant?” Wakashimazu-kun asked.

“We’re celebrating today,” Izawa-kun responded, then he puffed his chest out proudly. “Because in case you guys forgot, Both Nankatsu Girls’ and Boys’ Soccer Teams won Nationals.”

“Both of you are in the Girls team?” one of the Tachibana twins asked in disbelief.

“Got a problem with that, Tachibana #3?” Ayame challenged.

“No,” he answered. “Hey how can you tell I’m usually wearing the number 3 jersey?”

“I have a twin sister,” she answered as if it was simplest thing in the world. “I know how twins work.”

Before this could escalate even more because Ayame just didn’t know when to shut up, she stopped Ayame from saying anything more.

“Anyway,” she interjected. “It was nice talking to the representatives of Japan, but we really need to get going. The others are probably getting hungry waiting for us.”

She said the last bit while looking at the other four from Nankatsu.

The other guys started to say bye to them and said their congratulations, before leaving as well. They all finally separated and the five of them started their walk to the hotel, excitedly chatting and ready to celebrate.

When they arrived, they were met by impatient teammates, friends, and family who were grumbling about how late they were and how much they’re starving. They apologetically explained how they got held up. Of course, they still didn’t care and just said that they should start eating.

With that, her mom signaled for the servers to bring out the meat so they can start to cook their food. They were all surprised to see great the quality of the meet was, and all they could say was that their grandfather wanted to spoil them and bought them all the highest quality meet for their celebration.

They all then started to praise their grandfather and promised that they wouldn’t waste all these food.

She could only smile in embarrassment as they started their happy but crazy celebration.

* * *

Almost all of them were done eating, and they were just talking and laughing around, merrily reminiscing their exploits in Nationals. They were even comparing on who had tougher opponents. She could help but smile when Chieko-senpai retorted to Taki-kun that they had to play against Kitagawa and Hiyazaki-san, the female soccer prodigy.

She swept her eyes around the restaurant, happy to see that every one of her friends were enjoying themselves. They deserved it. They worked hard to achieve this goal. It’s time they took a rest and have fun, even if some of the boys did have the All Japan Junior Youth coming up.

Then her eyes landed on him. He was sitting all alone on a booth, smiling as he watched his friends try and trump the girls over their silly competition. But, his smile didn’t reach his eyes and she knew that something was wrong.

So she discreetly stood up from her seat and made her way to him.

“Hi,” she greeted slowly as she slid into the seat across from him.

“Hey,” he greeted back, albeit not as lively as hers.

“Why aren’t you joining in the fun?” she asked teasingly. “You guys just won Nationals. At least look like it.”

He gave her a look to which she only smiled at.

“I am happy that we won Nationals,” he defended, but then his mood deflated again. “I just... I just have a lot in my mind right now.”

She gave him a concerned look. “Is it your shoulder?” she asked carefully.

“Sort of,” he answered.

“Does it still hurt a lot?”

“Not that much,” replied as he unconsciously reached for it. “It’s just that… Coach Mikami said that I don’t have to do the training in Tsumagoi. I should be focused on having it healed more.”

So that was it.

“If that’s what he wants,” she started. “I think you should follow it.”

“I know,” he admitted. “But I don’t want to miss all those training. I want Japan to win in the tournament.”

“Hey,” she reached for his hand and gave it a comforting squeeze. “Don’t worry about missing training okay? Sure it would be a bummer, but it would be even worse if you injure it even more and had to be taken out completely.”

Then she gave him a wink. “Besides, there’s only one person who deserves that number 10 jersey for Japan.”

She felt her heart skip a beat when he gave her the most beautiful smile she’d ever since.

“How is it that you can always lift anyone’s spirits so easily?” he asked genuinely.

She shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly. “I guess it comes with the job description of being me.”

He only laughed, but she was happy that he was back to his old self.

Tsubasa didn’t have to worry about anything, because she knew she’ll recover just in time for them to compete, and whatever happens, she’ll always be by his side.

End Chapter


	20. Confessions

Chapter 20: Confession

It’s been a few days since the end of Nationals and almost everything went back to normal. The only thing out of the ordinary was Wakabayashi-kun had gone now for Germany and the five boys chosen for the International Junior Youth were in Tsumagoi, training for their matches in France that would soon be coming up.

Tsubasa should have been with them, instead he was here in Nankatsu, waiting until his shoulder has been healed.

She knew that he must be going out of his mind by now. She’d known him long enough to figure out what he must be feeling. But they both knew he couldn’t do anything. If he desperately wanted to play, he should be sitting tight and resting.

The little bell on top of the door of the shop jingled and she looked up from her sit behind the counter to greet the newcomers.

“Hi, welcome to- oh hey there Tsubasa-kun!” she said in surprise. He usually didn’t come to the shop all by himself. Only when Daichi felt like eating some food from the shop did he come at all.

“Hey,” he greeted back as he walked towards the counter.

She noticed from the corner of her eyes a group of girls sitting in one of the shop’s tables, turn to his direction, whispering and giggling as they pointed to him.

She felt a small tug of possessiveness hit her chest, but she ignored it. She didn’t have the right to feel that way. Tsubasa wasn’t even her boyfriend for god’s sake. Why the hell would she think that?

She’s not even sure if he felt the same way.

“You’re alone today?” She asked as he arrived in front of the counter. She felt the eyes of the other girls on her as she leaned forwards on the counter.

“Yeah,” he answered as he too leaned in the counter. “I just came home from Tsumaigo to see how everyone was, and it was only Tou-san at home. Kaa-san and Daichi are out shopping for groceries, and since it was only Tou-san, naturally I couldn’t find any food to feed myself with. Then my sweet tooth kicked in. I figured this would be the best place to get food.”

She chuckled at his answer.

“Of course you would want to eat something sweet just as you get home,” she teased lightly. “Don’t eat too much though,” she warned as she pinched his arm lightly. “Next thing you know, you’ll have trouble running because you got too chubby.”

“Ow!” he exclaimed as he took his arm away from her and cradle it close to him. “What is wrong with you and hurting us boys? Especially me?”

She only snickered and stuck her tongue out at him playfully.

“And for the record,” he started. “I am not chubby. A man doesn’t deserve to be called chubby. Besides, I burn all those sugar playing soccer anyway.”

She only shook her head her fondly.

“Whatever Chubby Eagle,” she teased once more.

“I am not chubby!”

She rolled her eyes at him jokingly. “Just tell me what you want. And they shouldn’t all be sweets. And also, no more chocolate. Goodness knows how much sugar you’ve eaten by now, you’re going to die of diabetes when you grow up.”

“B-but chocolate-“

“Tsubasa-kun,” she warned.

He made a small pout (which she found really cute because he looked so much like Daichi when he did it) and crossed his arms like a little child.

“Fine,” he grumbled. “You choose what I eat, since you don’t seem to approve of my choices.”

She chuckled as she thought about what she should give him.

“Well, I guess I could get you some turkey sandwich and just to satisfy your unhealthy obsession over sweets and chocolate, I’ll give you a strawberry vanilla cupcake along with a milkshake.”

“That sounds good,” he remarked as he gave her a smile that made her heart beat 389 miles a minute.

“I-I’ll just get these for you and ring them up quickly,” she said as looked away from him, hoping to god that he didn’t notice the blush on her cheeks.

She quickly got the things she ordered for him and she could feel his eyes on her and prayed she didn’t drop anything from her nervous.

She didn’t know why she was feeling like this. She wasn’t like this a few weeks ago. This just started with Nationals when she did all those bold things (suddenly hugging him, lacing his hands onto his, and getting a hug back). Ugh, and she was doing so great not stuttering like a wood chucker! Now, she’s almost back to square one.

But, that didn’t seem like a bad idea. She could fall in love with him all over again.

“So how were the boys?” she asked as she rang up his food, and also to get her mind of off her deep feelings to the boy paying his food across from her.

“They’re…” He began as he took his food.

Oh fuck, his mood deflated. Something must have happened when he was there. Gotta think of something fast.

“You know what,” she interrupted. “Why don’t we take a walk and you can tell me all about it then?”

“A walk?” he said skeptically. “Are you sure? Aren’t you still working? Won’t they need your help?”

“Don’t worry,” she assured him as she began to untie her apron. “It’s not busy today. They’ll be fine without me. Besides, I need a break. I’ve been working since morning. Be right back.”

She went to the kitchen and told one of their employees that she would be taking a break for a while. They just told her to have fun.

She arrived into the shop area to see him casually slipping on his milkshake. She noticed one of the girls from that group stood up from her seat, probably dared by her friends to speak to him.

She didn’t where it came from but she ran from where she was to where he was standing and grabbed a hold of his wrist.

“Come on, Eagle,” she said as she dragged him towards the door. “We don’t have all day.”

“H-hey wait a minute!”

She only chuckled as he spluttered from behind her, but she looked to girls from the corner of her eyes, daring them to move, challenging them to do something.

She directed her gaze back towards the front and the two of them left the shop.

She was oddly satisfied to see the dumbfounded looks on those girls’ faces. 

* * *

She should have expected this, but when it came to him, it always came back to soccer. Or a soccer field at least.

They were sitting on the slope by the soccer field near the river. He was finishing eating his cupcake that he bought earlier before. He couldn’t exactly eat while walking, so they stopped by the field so he could eat.

He was in the middle of telling her how the guys beat the combined upperclassmen of Toho and Nankatsu, who were specifically asked by the coaches to help train them. They were members of the winners of Nationals, and with their combined talents, they were bound to be strong opponents.

But with the J-boys determination and perseverance, they managed to win 2-1.

“They gave me something too,” he added, his voice oddly soft.

“Really?” she asked as she hugged her knees.

“They gave me the number 10 shirt,” he answered as he leaned back, supported by his hands. Then he chuckled, “They already picked out there jerseys, and nobody wanted to take it. You wanna know what they told me?”

She gave him a curious look. “What?”

She thought right then that his grin could have ended wars.

“They told me that nobody deserved to wear the number 10 jersey but me,” he turned to look at her with that smile on his face. “Just like what you said.”

Her heart skipped a beat.

She looked away from him, a light blush gracing her cheeks. She started playing with a peace of grass near her feet.

“I guess the boys and me just have the same thoughts,” she muttered, still not looking for him.

He chuckled at her answer and looked at the orange sky.

“They’ll be going to Germany the day after tomorrow to play a friendly match with one of the teams there.”

“Wakabayashi-kun’s team right?” she guessed with a smile.

That made him turn to her in surprise. “How’d you know?”

She chuckled and answered, “Shiori-chan told me. Because of their same fondness for dogs, they managed to hit it off and found themselves as online pals. Wakabayashi-kun even asked her to look after John the whole time he’s gone.”

“Well, I guess you know now,” he chuckled, but then he sighed. “Knowing that they’re going to go against Wakabayashi-kun made me more excited to go to Europe than ever.”

She noticed that he reached unconsciously for his shoulder again.

“Hey,” she patted his arm with an encouraging smile. “I’m sure if you continue your recovery, then you’ll be able to go to Europe and join everyone else.”

He returned her smile with one of this own.

“The doctor told me something yesterday,” he started as he took his hand off his shoulder.

“What did he say?” she asked as she took her hand off his arm.

“He said to wait just a few more days,” he answered happily. “Just a few more days and I’m fully recovered.”

“Really?” she exclaimed joyfully. “That’s awesome, Tsubasa-kun!”

He chuckled again at her reaction. “And I might be able to join them sooner than we all thought.”

He sighed again in happiness and laid down on the grass. “I can’t wait.”

She smiled but it slowly, slowly turned into a tiny frown.

She’s happy that he finally recovered but she couldn’t help but think that he was leaving again. Granted, it was just for a short while and not as long when he left for Brazil. But he was leaving again, and the world will probably turn their attention on to him. He would reach greater heights and finally leave them behind, leave her behind.

He was leaving again, and she couldn’t help but think that he’d finally forget about her.

* * *

It was 10:30 in the evening and she wasn’t home at all was instead at the hill of Hikarigaoka Park, gazing mindlessly at the stars. Her mom was gone for the week and wouldn’t be back until tomorrow afternoon. Ayame went to Paris with her family for their yearly summer trip. Apparently, it was her turn to pick where they were going this year, and she just knew her cousin has another motive to go to Paris than just visit the place. Sneaky girl.

With her cousin and mom gone, it made for a great time for her to leave the house and have time to think to herself. It was dangerous when she starts to think, because she usually gets terrible ideas.

Like finally confession her feelings for him.

He was leaving for Germany tomorrow. The doctor was right and his shoulder healed faster than they all expected. Their friends, those that were left here in Japan, tested his shoulder in a little game of “try to pass us and score” a few days ago, and he of course did it easily, proving that he really did recover. Since he was so happy to finally be healed, he started to find a flight to Germany right away.

He told them that he’s flying tomorrow at 11 in the morning.

That was when her heart and her mind finally agreed that it was time to tell him how much she had fallen for him.

It’s been years since she had started to have her feelings for him. Years since she tried to move on and get on with life, knowing that it was impossible for him to have feelings for her because they were young, and she’s still naïve for keeping these feelings for so long.

She hated how much she’s starting to get jealous from all the stares he gets from other girls they encounter, hated how they could shamelessly flirt with him and how clueless he was, and hated herself more for getting jealous of soccer of all things.

But, no matter how much she tried, how much she ignored them, she just couldn’t get over him.

She didn’t know if the only way she could finally move on was to finally tell him of all her buried feelings for him.

Or maybe it wouldn’t but she knew, she believed that maybe it was time to say all these things to him.

She was laying down on the grass as the star twinkled above her. She mindlessly took a picture of the night sky and unconsciously sent it to him because the next thing she knew was that she received a text from him.

_That looks beautiful. Where’d you take it?_

Quickly she tapped a reply.

_Hikarigaoka Park._

Immediately she got a message back.

_What? Why are you there so late at night? Don’t you know how dangerous it could be at this time?_

She rolled her eyes and keyed in her answer.

_Don’t worry I’ll be fine._

Her phone alerted her of another message.

_Fine? You know what don’t go anywhere and just stay there. I’m picking you up and walking you home._

Seeing that she couldn’t argue with him, she just sighed through her nose and pressed the lock button before turning back to the sky, and waited for him to come.

Since the park wasn’t that far away from his house, he arrived after a few minutes. She glanced at him from the corner of her eyes when she heard the scrunching of the grass coming from his direction, but then she turned to watch the stars light up the sky.

“Hey,” she heard him greet her as he stood beside her.

“Hi,” she greeted back, still not moving from her position.

“So what are you doing here in the middle of the night?” he asked as he looked up the sky.

“Thinking,” she answered nonchalantly.

“About?” he pried some more, not content with her answer.

“Stuff,” she replied cryptically.

She heard him sigh and she didn’t particularly care. He would know soon what she was thinking about anyway.

Because she made the decision to finally tell him, even if she already knew what his answer was going to be.

“Well, if you’re done thinking about stuff,” he started, “then we should probably get going home. It’s already 11.”

She hummed her response. “I’m done.” Then she raised one of her arms. “Help me up.”

He chuckled at her order but took her hand nonetheless. She used him as she got herself up from the ground, but instead of walking towards the direction where he came from, she walked towards the railings instead and looked all over the town.

“Ne, Tsubasa-kun?” She started. He turned to her in confusion, wondering what she was doing. “Have you ever thought of what your future would be?”

She didn’t even need to look to know that his eyebrows were knitted together to show how much puzzled he suddenly became.

“What brought that up?” he asked. “But yeah, I have.”

“What do you think about then?” she asked as she leaned her body on the railings.

“Well, you know,” he started a little bit embarrassed. “Going Pro in Brazil, winning the World Cup for Japan.”

She giggled at his answer. Why did even have to ask, of course it would be about soccer. “Silly Eagle, of course I knew about that,” she said. Then she took a deep breath and exhaled. “I-“ she licked her lower lip, “I mean have you ever thought of stuff aside from soccer.”

“Not really,” she heard him answer nonchalantly. “I mean, I could start thinking about that, but it’s kinda hard because everything leads back to soccer for me.”

She gave a sad smile, and she was lucky that she was facing away from him.

She gave a humorless chuckle. “Of course, why did I even have to ask? Soccer would always be your first priority.”

“I- I don’t get what your saying-“

“But,” she interrupted him as she stood up from leaning against the railings, “But I just really have to say this I guess, because I don’t know if I ever get another chance before I turn into a coward again.” She gave a soft smile to herself as she looked down over the town.

She turned back to him, this time with a bigger smile. It was time, time to say everything she bottled up inside her, time to finally tell him what she’d been meaning to since so long ago.

Their eyes met and she opened her mouth.

“I like you, Tsubasa-kun,” she declared as the breeze lazily passed by them, gently swaying her hair.

“No,” she shook her head as the breeze continued on.

“I’m absolutely, irrevocably, in love with you.”

End Chapter


	21. Wait For Me

Chapter 21: Wait for Me

“I’m absolutely, irrevocably, in love with you.”

He was not expecting her sudden confession, nor was he really expecting like that at all. The only thing he found he could do, was gape at her with wide unbelieving eyes.

“And I know that this is pretty sudden,” she admitted, “and you only want to focus on soccer for now. But, I guess I just really had to say this to you before, I guess before I regret never telling you.”

She gave him a smile, and he could only gulp. “I’m not expecting you to give me answer right away, because I’m really not expecting you to you know, return my feelings back.” She chuckled shyly as she scratched her cheek. “I mean I’m just me, everybody’s Anego that always hanged out with you guys. I’m not even that good looking and not that great of a soccer player. The only thing I can really do is probably cook alright and scream my lungs out for you guys. I don’t even know what you would see in me. You probably even have someone you like in Brazil that’s definitely more talented and gorgeous than me.”

 _That’s not true_ , he wanted to shout. She’s their biggest supporter and she cooked the most amazing food and she’s so beautiful-

“Oh god I’m rambling,” she said as she twiddled with her hands. She then ran a hand through her hair. “Just, just don’t think hard about this, okay. I just needed to get that off my chest. You don’t need to trouble yourself about giving me an answer. You have more important things to do. Of course you do, you’re going to Germany tomorrow and then to France for the International Junior Youth Tournament and here I am taking up your time when you’re supposed to be resting for your flight tomorrow. Oh my god, I need to really shut up now.”

He watched as she ran her hand through her hair again and took deep breaths to calm herself down.

He wanted to tell her that this was important, that she was important. But he didn’t know what to say to her because even he didn’t know what he felt and he didn’t want to say something he didn’t mean just to have her hurt in the process.

“I know this was a bad time to say that,” her voice interrupted him from thinking. He didn’t even notice that she moved near him. “But please, don’t think about this for now and just think of the tournament okay?” her hand reached for his and she gave it a light squeeze as she peered up to him. “And no matter what you decide, promise me we will always be friends because having you in my life is the greatest thing that happened to me and being your friend is better than becoming a stranger to you.”

He felt his heart skip a beat.

Then she gave him another smile. “Let’s go home.”

He nodded and she let go of his hand, and started to walk before him.

He suddenly began to think how warm her hand was and wished that she didn’t let go, but he didn’t tell her and only walked after her.

They didn’t speak all the way home.

When he got home, the lights weren’t on, just like how he left it. He didn’t exactly tell his parents that he would be gone for a while. He did leave a note in his room that he would be going to Hikarigaoka Park to pick her up from there and will be right back as soon as he dropped her off home.

His plan was when he got home, he would go straight to bed a little amused with what kind of excuse she would give him about why he was there this late at night.

Instead, she confessed to him and now he was confused.

He went inside the kitchen and turned on the lights. He got a glass from the cabinet and filled it with water. He didn’t even take a drink from it, and instead just stared at it. The water showing him his face, and he didn’t even mind that he was wearing a confused frown because that’s just how he felt, confused and upset because he has no idea what to feel at all.

“Tsubasa?”

His mom’s voice snapped him from his thoughts.

“Is that you?”

“It’s me Kaa-san,” he answered back. “I’m in the kitchen.”

He heard his mom’s footsteps coming to the kitchen and he quickly gulped down his glass of water.

“Did Sanae-chan get home safely?” his mom asked as he turned around to face her coming from the doorway, in her pajamas. She must have read his note in his room.

“Yeah,” he nodded as he tried to give a smile, but he was sure it looked more of a grimace than anything.

“Uh-oh,” his mom exclaimed. “I don’t like that look.”

“What look?” he tried to feign innocence, even though he already knew what she was talking about.

“Oh, don’t try to deny it,” his mom told him. “I’m your mother and even if I didn’t see for three years, I would still know what’s bothering you. Now, go and have a sit while I make us some tea.”

“A-alright,” he hesitantly followed and sat on one of the chairs around the table. He didn’t really know whether his mom could help with… whatever this is. But he’ll take whatever advice he could get.

There was a mug of tea being put in front of him and he gave her his thanks. She sat across from him, also with a mug of hot tea in her hands.

“So,” his mom started, “want to tell your Kaa-san what’s wrong?”

He thought of how he was going to tell her what happened with them. He couldn’t just exactly tell him that she confessed to him and he had no idea how he was going to approach this.

“H-have,” he licked his bottom lip as he stared at his reflection on the tea’s surface, “Have you ever had a close friend tell you they like you, and you don’t exactly know what to do, but at the same time you don’t want to hurt them?”

His mom only stared at him for a long time, and he gulped by how intense she was looking at him, but he was surprised when she only grabbed her mug up to her lips and took a sip of the tea.

“So Sanae-chan finally confessed, huh?” she sighed. Then she chuckled, “She finally found the courage.”

He gave her a shock looked. “What do you mean, Kaa-san?”

She chuckled again, “She’s been smitten with you for years now, my oblivious son.”

He gave an embarrassed laugh and moved one of his hands to the back of neck, kneading it. “Is that so? I never, I never known.”

“Well, she never did tell you,” she replied. “Nor did she tell anyone for that matter. You were gone for three years, but all the while she never stopped liking you. And everyone but you noticed it. How can I have such an oblivious boy for a son, I never know.” She said as she sighed dramatically.

He found that he couldn’t say anything to that.

“She tried to, you know,” his mom told him. “Tried to move on from you.”

That took his attention and he looked up to face her. Instead she was calmly sipping her tea.

“Whenever you were mentioned, she would suddenly be quiet. She tried to go out with some boys who asked if they could date, but that didn’t often considering your friends were very protective of her and thought they were unworthy to be Sanae-chan’s boyfriend. They would try and intimidate all those other boys who tried to think of even laying a hand on their Anego. But I think deep down, they could only see you to be only one for her.”

For some reason, he felt eternally grateful that his friends did all of those things.

“I think she even took up soccer again just to forget about you,” his mom added.

For the first time, he found himself resenting the sport he loved with all his soul.

“So,” his mom started again. “Did you give her your answer?”

“I-“ his voice got stuck in his throat. “I haven’t said anything to her.” He peered down to the tea again, refusing to meet her gaze.

He heard her click her tongue, “We can’t have that now, can we?”

“I know,” he replied as he ran his hands through his hair in frustration. “I tried to say something, but I didn’t know what to tell her and she never gave me a chance to talk because she fully believed that I’m never going to like her back.”

“Is she right then?”

He pursed his lips together and sighed, running his hand through his hair again. “I don’t know,” he mumbled. “I don’t know because this, this was too sudden and she just told me to push this off my mind to focus more on the tournament because she thinks it’s more important than all of this.”

“What do you think you should do then?”

He didn’t answer her, because both of them knew that he really fucking didn’t know what to do.

He heard his mom sigh and he could understand her.

“I think you should follow her and think about the tournament first,” she told him. He whipped his head up to look at her with shock.

What was she talking about? Was she telling her to completely ignore her feelings and pretend that nothing happened?

He was about to complain, but she stopped him as if already knowing what he’ll say.

“I’m not saying to ignore what she said,” she assured her. “But Sanae-chan is a strong girl. She knew what she did and she also knew how much soccer is important to you. That’s why you need to respect her decision to let you make your dreams come true first.”

“I know,” he muttered in defeat. “I just, I don’t want to leave her hanging like that.”

“If you really think that,” his mom stood up and walked towards the sink to put her mug in there. “Then tell her what your answer is after the tournament.”

He nodded hesitantly as she walked towards him and patted his shoulder.

“Now, why don’t you get some sleep,” she told him. “You have a big day tomorrow after all.” She patted his arm and went out of the kitchen, reminding him to turn off the lights when he goes back to his room.

He nodded again and after putting his mug in the sink as well as turning off the lights like his mother ordered, he went back to his room.

But he knew he wasn’t going to sleep that night.

* * *

He left his house early in the morning to catch the bus that was headed for Shizuoka Airport in Shizuoka. His parents, along with a sleepy Daichi already said their goodbyes to him before he left the house. He felt bad that his brother had to wake up so early in the morning just to tell him bye, but he was touched when Daichi was the one who wanted to wake up early just to see him off.

He was right though, he couldn’t sleep last night. Her words were stuck in his head all throughout the night and whenever he tried to close his eyes, he could only see her smile as she told him how much she was in love with him. He tried so hard to get the image off his mind, but nothing worked. So instead of sleeping, he thought of what happened, and his feelings for her.

He liked being with her, really. She was funny, and she was a good person to talk to. She could keep up with all their soccer talk and it was no question that she cared about everyone she’s close with. She could also play soccer quite well, no matter what she tries to deny. She was quite beautiful too, even if she tries to tell people otherwise.

Yes, he liked her, but he didn’t know whether it was enough to be worthy of her, worthy of her love.

So, he decided that he will tell her what he thought about the next time they meet.

“Oi, Tsubasa!”

Ishizaki’s voice snapped him out of his thoughts.

He saw all his friends waiting for him by the bus stop. They were all waving at him and he couldn’t help but smile.

“Guys!” he exclaimed as he ran up to them.

“What took you so long?” Ishizaki asked irritably. “We’ve been waiting here for ages.”

He laughed and kneaded the back of his neck in embarrassment. “Well, I didn’t think you guys would see me off.”

His other friends took his side and gave jibes at Ishizaki, who only screamed at them to shut up in embarrassment.

He took that time to look around his group of friends that wanted to see him off. Almost everyone was there, except of course those that were in Europe.

And her.

She wasn’t there at all.

“Is Sanae-chan,” he started as he licked his bottom lip, “Is Sanae-chan here?”

His friends all stopped their bantering and looked at each other before shrugging.

“Well, we did try calling her phone,” Morisaki said. “But she wasn’t answering at all.”

“Oh,” he mumbled dejectedly. “I see.”

“We could always try again,” Takisugi suggested as he took out his phone.

“No, no,” he told them. “It’s alright. Don’t call her. She’s probably still sleeping. It is still too early in the morning.”

“Are you sure?” Ishizaki asked him.

He nodded in confirmation. “I’m positive.”

They heard the bus nearby and looked to see that it was about to arrive.

“Well, here’s my bus,” he told them as the bus stopped right by them.

“You take care out there okay?” Ishizaki told him. “And make sure Japan wins, you hear?”

His other friends exclaimed in agreement.

“I will,” he chuckled as he got up the bus.

“And tell the other four that as well okay?”

He chuckled again and said that he would tell them that.

He waved to them as the bus started to move and he could almost hear their screams and well wishes through the window.

When he couldn’t see them anymore, he found himself frowning.

He took his phone out of his pocket, trying to decide whether he should call her or not. He knew what he wanted to say, but he didn’t know whether she would listen.

Oh, fuck it.

He quickly found her number and pressed the call button.

He waited for her answer, but she didn’t and it only lend her to her voicemail. He was disappointed that she wouldn’t answer, but he needed to tell this to her.

“Hey,” he started and he suddenly found his throat dry. “It’s, it’s me Tsubasa.” He took a deep breath. “I know you told me not to think about what you said last, but I- I couldn’t sleep after what you told me. And I guess, I just wanted to tell this to you because, because I think it’s unfair that I have to make you wait again.”

Then he found himself chuckling. “Actually I think it you’re the one who should be called unfair. You told me you’re in love with me when you know I have to fly to Germany today.”

Then he stopped his chuckles. “But that’s not why I called. I called,” he stopped to take another deep breath. “I called because I just want you to know that, I can’t really give you answer right now, because I don’t know what to do yet. I- I think I might like you back, but I’m still confused. But, please wait for me. Until after I realize what I’m feeling. Wait fo-“

“I’ll wait.”

He widened his eyes when she heard her voice from the other line, just as the bus stopped because of the stoplight.

“No matter how long, I’ll wait for you,” he heard her voice shake. “Look outside your window,” she lightly ordered.

He turned to look out his window and he felt his heart stop.

She was there, and she was just in cotton shorts and a hastily put on sweater and her hair was in a disarray and her eyes was sparkling with tears and she never looked more beautiful.

The light turned green and the bus started to move, she raised a hand to him just as he pressed his palm against the glass. He tried to keep looking at her as the bus moved away from her and she just gave her a smile.

He clenched his hand into a fist as she faded from his sight.

 _Wait for me_.

End Chapter


	22. Missing Her

Chapter 22: Missing Her

He was laying on his stomach on one of the beds in the room he shared with Misaki-kun, and Matsuyama-kun. Everyone was in their room, even Wakabayashi-kun and Misugi-kun. They were watching a video of a Bundesliga match that Wakabayashi brought for them to see.

It’s been three days since he left Japan to go Europe. He arrived in Germany just before the second half of the match with Wakabayashi’s team, but he couldn’t play because he wasn’t listed in the roster. It was hard to see his get decimated that easily, and it didn’t help that Wakabayashi saved almost every single goal his teammates threw. Like, how the hell did he suddenly get that good? Was he not playing to his fullest during Nationals, or did those days practicing with his team again sparked inside him that just magically made him stronger. He even said to the team that they could never win against them. What the fuck?

_I’m sure Wakabayashi-kun had some kind of reason about why he was being… more of a jerk than usual._

He smiled as he read the words on the screen of his phone.

They were talking, er, chatting online on one of the app she said he should get for his phone. She said that as long as they have Wi-Fi, this would work. So far, it was doing great.

To be perfectly honest, he was nervous trying to contact her. They did last meet each other on an awkward note, but he was surprised when it was her who made the first move. He got an email from her saying that she has no problems being his friend for the time being, just as long as he finally figure out what he felt for her. He would be eternally grateful for her for doing that, and he mentally added that to his list of why loving her would be the best thing that would happen to him.

So, with some of the awkwardness gone, they proceeded to talk about what happened so far ever since he felt Japan and arrived in Germany. And for some reason, he found himself ranting to her. He never rants, something which she pointed out and was thoroughly amused by. But he couldn’t help himself! He was frustrated and she was the easiest person he could ever talk to that didn’t concern soccer at all. She didn’t help matters when she just constantly listens (read in this case) so patiently that he just wanted to come back to Japan and just bury his face on her shoulder and whine to her because just being with her made everything better.

Huh? Where did that come from? He never thought of that before, but for some reason it made sense.

_And that’s not just it either. We were supposed to have another friendly match against the Italian Team but no, they backed out on the last minute because they saw the game with Wakabayashi-kun’s team and saw our easy defeat at their hands so they thought that we were a weak team._

He looked up to see everyone still watching a match from the Bundesliga as he waited for her reply. He didn’t really notice it, but he had no idea how they all managed to fit in this small room as they huddled around the TV, totally intent on watching the match. Well, as long as they were enjoying it and cleaned up their food then it was alright.

And hopefully they didn’t notice him not paying any attention to the match. God knows how much teasing his going to get when they found out who he was chatting (skyping, she said) with.

His phone pinged.

_Oh dear. That must have ticked you off pretty bad. What did you do then?_

He smirked as he typed in his answer.

_I kicked their ass of course_

Just as he pressed enter, Izawa-kun looked at him.

“Oi, Tsubasa. Why aren’t you up here watching the game?” he asked him as everyone turned to face him. “And were you just smirking at your phone?”

“Really?” he asked innocently and hope to god Izawa falls for it. “I think you were just imagining it Izawa-kun.”

“Hmmm,” Izawa said as they stared at each other for a long time. He could feel the sweat on his forehead forming and he just really wanted Izawa to turn around and let this go. “Are you sure?”

“Positive,” he answered with a nod.

“You know Tsubasa-kun, you’re sweating,” Misaki pointed out while giving him a sly smile. That little-

Shit, gotta think of something really quick.

“It’s just the heat,” he replied hastily. “I guess I’m just not used to European summers.”

“Tsubasa, this room is air conditioned,” Wakabayashi said blankly as he crossed his arms.

“W-well,” he stuttered. “Maybe I couldn’t feel the air, since there are a lot of us in here.”

“Didn’t you just tell me that the Brazilian summers were harsher than this?” Misugi added innocently.

Double shit.

“W-well I-“

“Are you hiding something from us, Tsubasa?” Hyuuga narrowed his eyes at him.

“No!” he denied vehemently, unconsciously tightening his grip on his phone. “What makes you think that, Hyuuga-kun?” he laughed nervously.

“Are you sure, Tsubasa-kun?” Misaki asked, giving his support to everyone else. That traitor.

“I’m definitely sure,” he promised.

When Misaki Taro smirks, it meant something terrible will happen to the person who went against him.

At that moment, it was him.

“Why don’t we check?”

Just he said that, he felt something heavy on his back and turned around to see the Tachibana twins sitting on him, snickering.

“H-hey what’s the de-“

He couldn’t even finish the sentence when Taki took his phone away from his hand.

Oh fuck.

He tried to get up from his position and take it back, but the twins’ weight were preventing him from doing anything.

He’s doomed.

“Let’s see what Tsubasa’s hiding,” Taki sang as he scrolled through his phone. He tried to get the Tachibana brother’s to bet off him, but they wouldn’t budge. He could only watch in horror as Taki’s face give an expression that told everyone he realized something.

“Isn’t this Anego’s skype address?” he asked, shocked. “You’ve been skyping with Anego this whole time?”

“What? No freaking way!”

He could only hide his face with his hands as Kisugi and Izawa ran towards Taki to read through his phone.

“Holy shit, it’s true!” Izawa exclaimed as he yanked Tsubasa’s phone out of his friend’s grasps.

“Huh,” Misaki said as he put a hand under his chin. “Is this the reason why you seemed to be always in a good mood after you read something from your phone?”

He only glared as he threw the pillow under him to his best friend, who caught it easily.

“Anego?” Jito pondered out loud. “Why does it sound familiar?”

“Isn’t she the girl who we talked to back when we got outside the Association Building?” Wakashimazu pointed out.

“Who? The short sarcastic one?”

She’s not as sarcastic as Ayame, thank you very much.

“No, the other one. The nicer one.”

“This one,” Wakabayashi answered as he showed everyone something on his phone. Probably a picture of her. “The one on your right.

How come he has a picture of her in his phone?

“Oh, _that_ one,” Jito answered in recognition. “She’s pretty.”

She’s beautiful, damn it.

“Wow, Tsubasa, I didn’t see this coming from you,” Izawa remarked as the three of them continued to scroll through his phone. “Oh this conversation looks interesting.”

God, if only he could get out of this position, he’ll definitely kick their asses right now.

“Hey, Tsubasa,” Kisugi called out to him.

“What?” he asked irritably, giving his friend and teammate a light glare.

“Calm down, Tiger.”

“Eagle,” Taki interrupted. “Anego calls him Eagle.”

“What? She does not.”

“Dude, it’s right here.”

Oh god, they got all the way there?

“Fine, whatever,” Kisugi scoffed as he turned back to Tsubasa. “But anyway, I have to ask you something.”

“Oh now you ask for my permission?” he snapped. “And here I thought it was unneeded seeing that you just grabbed my phone without asking.”

“Ooh, touchy,” Wakabayashi remarked from where he is. He could just hear the smirk on the jerk’s face. “Better watch out Kisugi. Anego’s rubbing off of him if you know what I mean.”

The whole room was filled with snickers and chuckles as he found himself asking why he was teammates with such immature jerks.

“Just ask Kisugi-kun. I can’t do anything either way,” he sighed as he massaged his temples. He could feel a headache forming and he could

“Okay then,” his friend said. “So we read through you guys chatlog and texts, which by the way were really long. You guys liked to talk to each other do-“

“Just get to the point,” he ordered.

“Right,” he heard Kisugi gulped and he couldn’t help but feel proud. Yes, be scared of him, because once he gets free…

“Anyway, we also read the emails-“

Oh lord the emails too?

“-and something really caught our eye, and it got us thinking-“

“Kisugi,” he growled, thankfully he figured out that was the only warning he was getting.

“Did something happen between you and Anego before you left?”

That took him surprise and shut him up. They were talking so normally, he forgot all about what happened the night before he left.

_“I am absolutely, irrevocably in love with you.”_

“…Nothing,” he sighed as he ran a hand through his hair, refusing to meet anyone’s eyes. “She just told me to take care and to tell you guys not to injure yourselves.”

“Uh huh,” Wakabayashi snorted. “And next thing you tell us that Ishizaki found himself a girlfriend.”

He directed his glare to the goalkeeper. “ _Nothing_ happened,” he stressed.

“Hmmm,” Taki hummed. “Well, if Tsubasa doesn’t want to tell us, we could always video call Anego.”

Oh hell no.

“Shouldn’t she be sleeping at this time? It is four in the morning right now,” Misugi pointed. At least someone’s on his side. Thank you, Misugi.

“Nah,” Izawa brushed off his worries. “Besides, if she was chatting with Tsubasa, she’s definitely awake. Now where’s that call butto- aha there it is!”

Hopefully she didn’t answer at all.

But then again, nobody was on his side that night.

“Izawa-kun?” her voice came from his phone and he felt his heart skip a beat just hearing it. It’s only been three days but why is it that he couldn’t help but missed hearing it?

“Anego!” The three exclaimed in excitement as they tried to fit themselves on his phone’s camera.

“What are you guys doing with Tsubasa-kun’s phone?” she asked skeptically.

“We’re in his room he shares with Misaki and Matsuyama watching a Bundesliga match,” Kisugi explained. “Here, I’ll show you everyone.” He took the phone from Taki’s hand, who whined in displeasure, but he was ignored and Kisugi faced the camera to see everyone. Everyone except him.

The other guys said their greetings pleasantly.

“Hi?” her voice sounded unsure, Kisugi turned back the phone to face him. “That still doesn’t answer why you guys have Tsubasa-kun’s phone. And where is he anyway? I don’t see him anywhere.”

“He’s right here,” he said just as he directed the camera to him.

He felt his breath hitch when he saw her.

She was laying on her stomach, like he was, but her hair was a mess and she was wearing glasses this time as she rested her chin on her arm that was hugging a pillow. Her eyebrows were knitted in confusion and there was a cute frown on her face and-

She looked gorgeous.

“H-hey,” he managed to say weakly and raised his hand.

“I- wha- Tsubasa-kun? Why do you have the Tachibana twins on your back?

Said twins gave her their greetings as she said hers back in puzzlement.

“I-it’s a long story,” he answered sheepishly.

He saw her sigh in defeat. “I don’t even what to know,” she said.

“But anyway, we have a question for you, Anego,” Izawa took the phone from Kisugi to face him and Tsubasa felt his heart race. This is it, they’re going to ask her, and they’re going to figure out what really happened.

“Okay?” she replied in confusion.

Izawa held the phone at arms’ length to show her face to everyone. Then he shared nods with Kisugi and Taki and turned back to look at her.

“Did something happen between you and Tsubasa before he left?”

There was a terse moment of silence between all of them, and he almost sighed in relief. But then he hoped so soon.

“W-what are you talking about?” she stuttered as she looked away from the screen, a splash of pink on her cheeks as tried to hide her face behind her arms. “Nothing happened.”

“That blush on your face tells us otherwise,” Izawa snickered. “Did you and Tsubasa finally kiss?”

His two other accomplices were snickering behind him.

“ _No,_ we did not,” she hissed but then she smirked. “But I know you and Rika-chan did. Why didn’t you tell me you had a date with her when we were all in Tokyo?”

He couldn’t help but cheer at how great she was at changing the subject.

“W-what?” Izawa spluttered. “H-how do you know about that?”

“What the hell, Izawa? You said that you’re not getting a girlfriend until next year?”

“Is this the reason why you disappear sometimes?”

“Oh Izawa got himself a girlfriend? I would have thought Tsubasa would be the first one considering how he and you are tight,” Wakabayashi retorted, adamant to bring the subject back to them.

“Well, I’m disappointed that you haven’t asked Shiori-chan yet,” She replied hotly. “Or are those invitation to walk you guys’ dogs aren’t what they’re supposed to be?”

“H-how in the world-“ Wakabayashi exclaimed in shock.

“Busted, Wakabayashi-kun,” Misaki snickered. “I can’t believe you would decide to finally start liking someone.”

“Shut up Misaki!”

“Oho?” she interrupted as she gave them all a sly smirk. “Don’t even pretend Misaki-kun. Those conversations in French with Ayame aren’t as harmless as we think right?”

“A-anego!”

“Che,” Hyuuga scoffed. “You’re such pansies. Getting yourselves flustered by mentioning of a girl.”

“Like you have any room to talk Hyuuga-kun,” she retorted. “I remember you frantically texting me how to deal with –what’s her name again? Ah, right- Maki, wasn’t it.”

“O-oi!”

Everyone again snickered, laughing as Hyuuga seethed to girl on the screen.

That didn’t end there though. She decided to pick on other members too.

“So, do you call Yayoi-chan before going to bed, Misugi-kun?”

“What about you Matsuyama-kun? Are you going to see Yoshiko-chan in France?”

“Kisugi-chan, didn’t you say you wanted to ask that one girl out from your class?”

That was the moment that he, and along with everyone else, realized that Nakazawa Sanae was one evil person.

“You’re ruthless, Anego,” Izawa sighed in defeat.

“That’s what you get when you cross me, Izawa-kun,” she replied as she yawned. “You guys never learned your lesson. I would have thought you guys would remember after the “Anee-chan” episode with Daichi. Be happy I’m not there with a soccer ball.”

Suddenly, the Shuutetsu trio suddenly had a gloomy atmosphere surround them.

“Ah,” they mumbled. “We are lucky.”

The other guys turned to each other in confusion, asking each other what they were talking about. They turned towards the other other Nankatsu members, but they only shrugged, as clueless as the rest of them.

“Well,” she yawned. “The sun’s about to come up and I haven’t slept a wink. You guys might want to give Tsubasa-kun’s phone back. It’s probably almost out of battery. I need to sleep anyway.”

“Fine,” they grumbled.

“Ayame might be meeting with you guys in Paris,” she yawned again. “Don’t know when though. She’ll contact you guys I’m sure.”

“Alright!”

“Well, I need to go guys,” she said. “See you! Ja.” She pressed the end button and her face disappeared from the screen.

They were filled with silence again before Taki sighed.

“We still didn’t know what happened between her and Tsubasa,” he remarked as he gave back Tsubasa’s phone. He took it, never been more grateful to have it back in his hands. The Tachibana twins finally got off his back and he couldn’t help but sigh in relief.

“Well, we did find out interesting things about each other,” Soda said, eyeing those she mentioned. The other members of the team could only snicker again.

“Can we just go back to watching the match?” Wakabayashi sighed.

“Agreed,” Hyuuga added.

“Boo, you spoilsports.”

They all started bickering and bantering again and he couldn’t but feel relieved. That was a stressful event he never want to be in again.

His phone buzzed in his hand and looked around to see if anyone was watching him. Good, no one was looking at him.

He read the message he got from her.

_Almost found out. Good thing they didn’t get distracted easily. ;)_

He smiled again and typed his reply.

_Thank god for that._

She answered right away.

_Haha. But I really need to sleep. I could see the sun rising from my window._

He replied quickly.

_Well, don’t let me stop you._

Her reply came as fast as his went.

_Well, I guess this is good night, er good morning for me, night for you._

_Yeah, so I guess good night then?_

_Yup, good night!_

That was the last message he received from her and he smiled to himself, happy that he could talk to ever.

He looked back towards his friends who finally decided to continue watching, screaming and shouting at the TV.

They could be quite a pain sometimes, but if it wasn’t for them, he might have missed the chance to see her face for the night.

Because even if he didn’t know what exactly he was feeling for her, he couldn’t deny that he missed her.

End Chapter


	23. Not the Only One

Chapter 23: Not the Only One

After that disastrous first match against Hamburg, and the sudden shrug off of the Italian team, All Japan Junior Youth played more games after that. But with his arrival, the team managed to win from then on, with their campaign ending with three wins and two loses.

It wasn’t so bad. They just need to have this going and they’re for sure going to win the tournament.

After their campaign though, Wakabayashi-kun was finally given permission to play for Japan, but even then, he’s been criticizing the team with their playing. He could see that his team was getting pissed at him, but him and Misaki both knew that he had a reason for doing that. Foreigners did have a different way of playing soccer. They should know, they were the only other ones who played with non-Japanese players, and they were ruthless.

They arrived in France to have Katagiri-san welcoming them and congratulating them for their campaign. Aside from France, it seemed like they were the first team to arrive in the country. Well, there was still three days left until the tournament begins. They have all the time in the world to arrive.

Coach Mikami told them that they could take the day off, but he just couldn’t sit still. He was too excited for the game they have in three days. Finally, they could have their payback for Italy for dissing them.

So when they arrived at the dorms, he and the rest of the members from Nankatsu took up Misaki-kun’s offer of a tour of Paris. He said that this way, they didn’t have to get antsy just staying the dorms, since he knew that they wouldn’t take a break anyway, especially him.

But even then, they didn’t forget to bring a ball with them. Actually, the six of them were just passing the ball among each other as they went around the streets of Paris as Misaki-kun told them some random facts about the places he pointed out.

That was also the time Wakabayashi-kun told them why he was being a huge dick to the other people.

Now, they were in one of the parks of Paris, playing a game of keep away to past time because they really didn’t want to be coped up in the dorms. They might know the reason why Wakabayashi-kun said all those things, but that didn’t mean everyone did. They didn’t really need a fight between teammates just before the tournament. Everything they worked on would be for nothing them.

He passed the ball to Taki-kun to prevent Kisugi-kun from taking it, but his curly haired teammate was quick to switch his attention to Taki-kun, thus it lead to the guy kicking it harder than necessary and it rolled farther away from them.

“Really, Taki, really?” Izawa turned to his friend. “You had one job!”

“What? I can’t help it!” Taki tried to defend himself. “I didn’t want to get rammed over by Kisugi.”

“Hey, don’t bring me into this. You’re the one who kicked it!”

The three of them started to banter and he heard his two other friends sighing from where they are. Wakabayashi-kun even started to scold them, but they quickly shut him up by telling him that nobody asked for his opinion.

That was their first sign that maybe these boys were spending too much time with the girls’ team.

“Wow, you guys. You’re in Paris and you chose to still play soccer and bicker,” they heard a familiar voice join them. “Good job using your time in a country you don’t visit often.”

They turned to where it came from and was surprised to see who it was.

There was a girl their age who had their ball under her feet. Her straight dark brown hair was unbound and fell across her back like waterfalls. Her eyes were covered by huge sunglasses and only then when she pushed it up to rest on her hair did they recognize who she was.

“Ayame-chan!” they exclaimed.

“What up?” she greeted as she kicked the ball back to them and started to trek towards them.

“What’s the matter with you guys?” she asked as she reached them. “You looked like you’ve seen a ghost.”

“Y-you’re here!” Taki-kun exclaimed. “H-how?”

She crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow. “Didn’t Sanae tell you guys? My family and I are going to be in France. We’ve been here since a few weeks ago.” Then Ayame turned to him. “Actually, I would have thought you would remember since I _left_ before you did.”

He raised his arms in defense, “A lot of things happened okay? I forgot.”

“That is still no excuse,” she countered. “She told you guys again when you guys called her that one night.”

“How do you know about that, Ayame-chan?” Misaki-kun asked curiously.

“Because I was chatting with her too,” she answered. “I rarely catch her awake at that time since there is a seven hour difference between France and Paris, so I took the chance to bug her. It turned out she was only awake because of you.” She pointed an accusatory finger at Tsubasa.

The glare she gave him spoke something deeper than what she just said, and he figured she knew what happened between Sanae and him.

Then she sighed. “Well, whatever,” she said. “I guess now you know that I’m here now.” Then she uncrossed her arms and perked up. “So how’s it going so far? Sanae told me that you guys lost to Wakabayashi-kun’s.”

They all had a sheepish look cross their faces. Why did she have to tell Ayame only the bad news? She was making them look bad.

“Hey, we won three more matches after that,” he tried to defend themselves. “It wasn’t all that bad.”

“But that was because you were there,” she replied nonchalantly. “If you were there, then the team’s chances would have been higher, but it still wouldn’t win you the game.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Kisugi-kun demanded from her.

She made a light giggle at his reaction, and he knew she just wanted to bristle their feathers, because really, this was Ayame. She made it a living to get on their nerves.

“I didn’t mean it like that,” she assured them and they were surprised by how sincere she sounded. “I just mean that, you guys were still missing a person. Wakabayashi-kun wasn’t playing with you guys.”

She smiled at them proudly. “A team can’t bring out its whole potential without everyone in it, right?”

They stared at her in silence, flabbergasted by how such a thing could come from her, before Misaki-kun chuckled.

“You had us worried for a moment, there Ayame-chan,” he remarked. “I would have thought you would say something like we were still lacking in training.”

“If anything, I think you guys would be the team that never gets tired of training,” she retorted, then she mumbled in a lower tone, “Soccer-obsessed freaks. Couldn’t even take in the sights of France and just went straight to soccer.”

“But I gotta admit though,” Wakabayashi-kun started, “What you just said sounded to be something Anego would say.”

That’s true. Sanae was usually the one giving them these kinds of talks.

“Well, I promised my dear cousin of mine that I’ll look after you guys,” she replied. “I’ve already done all my shopping and my family has to stay a few more weeks here because my mom still has a fashion show to do.”

“Oh yeah, you told us your mom is a famous fashion designer,” Taki-kun thought out loud. “I guess since Paris is a major city for fashion, she would be here.”

“Yep,” she answered dryly. “We’re showing the summer and fall collection by the end of the month and my parents thought it would be a right time to finally tour Paris.”

Huh, well Sanae told him differently.

“But I remember Sanae-chan told me that you were the one to pick Paris for this year for you guys’ family vacation,” he asked in confusion.

She flinched in surprise and her face started to flush into a light pink.

“W-well, it turned out I didn’t have to pick because my parents already has this trip planned,” she turned away from them. “It’s not like I wanted to watch you guys play or anything.”

“Your face is red, Ayame-chan,” Misaki-kun pointed out cheekily.

“Shut up Misaki-kun!” she roared at him, “I wasn’t purposely planning on watching every single game you guys will play.”

“Oh you’re watching all our matches?” Misaki-kun continued to tease.

“I- wha- argghhhh!” she exclaimed as she hid her face behind her hands. They all snickered as Misaki-kun smirked to her as she glared at him from the spaces between her hands.

He gave a glance at his friend from the corner of his eye as he dodged Ayame-chan’s punch, laughing all the way. His friends joined in the teasing as well, and that earned them a glare as she proceeded to chase after them as well.

But he never knew that Misaki-kun could act like that, especially towards a girl. He was always that one person who watched in silent amusement when their friends joked around. He would join in sometimes, but it wasn’t often. But this teasing?

Now he was curious to what exactly they talked about in French.

 

With Ayame’s insistence, they brought her along back to their dorms. She said something about needing to talk about to Coach Mikami. That puzzled them greatly. Why would she need to talk to their coach? And how did they stay in contact.

Well, she did answer their second question. Apparently Coach Mikami sent her an email, which he got her address from Shiori-chan, whose email he got from Wakabayashi-kun.

They turned to the goalkeeper, who only pulled down his cap and answered, “Don’t ask.”

So they didn’t, but all of them knew that he was going to get interrogated late.

As for their first question…

 _“Well now that’s a secret,”_ she replied with a teasing wink.

They tried to get it out of her, but she wouldn’t budge, so they ended their attempts for now anyway.

They arrived back to the dorms to see it deserted. They met Misugi-kun as he was leaving the place and they took that chance to ask him where everyone went.

He told them that Hyuuga-kun went to training with Wakashimazu-kun while the others all went somewhere he didn’t know. Probably touring the city.

That was also the time he finally noticed Ayame was with them.

He greeted her in surprise and she only said hi back nonchalantly before asking where Coach Mikami was, but he didn’t have to answer because he appeared right as Misugi-kun was about to answer.

Coach Mikami exclaimed in surprise and the two of them huddled close together in a corner. They talked in hushed whispers but it didn’t seem like something was wrong because they exchanged some bows after their talk.

Ayame left after their talk as she gave them quick goodbyes and said that she’ll see them tomorrow.

They could only look at each other in confusion before shrugging it off.

So now, here they were practicing yet again in preparation for the tournament. It seemed like everyone was both tensed and excited for the game coming up in two days. He couldn’t exactly blame them. He was as excited as they are.

He just shot a ball towards the goal line from outside the penalty area and Wakabayashi-kun never failed to live up to his claim of catching the ball that was shot outside of the penalty box.

“What kind of kick was that Oozora? That looked lousy as fuck. Put some more power in it!”

Why was he hearing Ayame’s voice?

They turned to the sides to see Ayame in a red sweatshirt and black sweatpants along with a string backpack on her back. She had her hands on her hips as her hair was bunched up in a high ponytail, something she usually wear when she’s playing.

He thought where this was going.

“Ayame-chan?” the members of Nankatsu exclaimed. “What are you doing here?”

“Helping you train, what else?” she said as she took off the bag from her shoulders.

“You?” Jito scoffed. “Train us? I doubt you can even help us.”

Wrong move Jito.

Ayame glared up to him and the other members of the team as the six players from Nankatsu flinched and tried to move away from her.

“Watch it, assface,” she warned. “I can pass you in three seconds.” Yes, she could. They are the proof. “Be happy I’m willing to even be here because of the boys.”

“Why you-“ Jito roared. “Who even called you here?”

“I did, Jito-kun,” Coach Mikami answered. “Kiseki-san is here by my request.”

They all turned to their coach in surprise. Why would he need to ask Ayame to be here?

“Her, Coach?” Soda-kun asked skeptically. “No offense, but what reason would she need to be here?”

“Kiseki-san is here to help train all of you for the next two days as well help us coaches in making decisions for player positions.”

He knew that was the reason she was there.

“What?” The team roared. “Why her? What if she can’t even keep up?”

“She can and she’s getting tired of all the sexism rolling in the air right now,” she interrupted already out of her sweatshirt and pants into a pick tank top and black shorts.

“She has already experienced playing against boys,” Coach Mikami explained. “I assure you that she can keep with all of you. I chose her because it would be beneficial to have the thoughts of someone who’s won National Titles for four years now as well as winning the same tournament for girls last year.”

“Word.”

“Are you serious?” One of the Tachibana twins exclaimed.

“If you want any more confirmation, you can even ask Izawa-kun, Kisugi-kun, and Taki-kun.”

Izawa-kun nodded. “Ayame-chan’s been part of Nankatsu’s Girls’ Soccer Team since we’ve started junior high, and you guys already know she’s part of the high school team as well, who just won Nationals.”

“Along with the other girls of the U-15 Japanese team, they won the International Cup last year,” Taki-kun added.

So if Ayame got in the team, then Sanae probably got in as well. She never told him about this. But still, he couldn’t believe that they’re girls team was that amazing.

“Plus, she could also give Misaki and Tsubasa a run for their money,” Kisugi ended confidently. “She can totally live up to her name as a ‘Miracle’. You shouldn’t underestimate her.

Misaki-kun chuckled from where he sat. Tsubasa has a bad feeling about that chuckle because when he did that (which wasn’t often), he just knew that he was planning something.

“I remember Ayame-chan completely stealing the ball from under my foot the last time we played against her. I wouldn’t be surprised if she did it again against all of you,” he taunted.

He saw his teammates bristling in anger. What in the world is he thinking trying to piss them off.

Wakabayashi-kun smirked and added his two cents in. “Yeah, and she could definitely outscore all of you.”

He could just feel the tension rolling around the field and Misugi-kun could only shake his head in exasperation.

“Okay, you big bullies,” Ayame interrupted before they could add anymore. “As much I love you guys praising my awesomeness on the field, I am not as great as you I am. If you really want to do those things, then Sanae deserves it more than I do. She was who led the International Team last year. And also, don’t listen to these idiots. I’m physically weaker than all of you guys, but I’m going to be helping you try out strategies for this tournament base on my experiences from last year. Just really ignore them.”

The other guys blinked owlishly before looking at each other and shrugging in confusion.

“That doesn’t mean that I won’t be a challenge,” she added icily. “If you thought that then get that out of your mind because I’ll be working your asses off for the next two days.”

She gave them a glare and he felt the Shuutetsu trio hide behind him while shivering. Even he had a bad feeling about her training.

“Now, that’s over,” she sighed. “Oozora on the field now.” She ordered as she walked past by him. “We need to talk.”

He thought he figured what she wanted to talk about.

He nodded and followed after her, ignoring the confused looks he got from his teammates. They were probably wondering why she would need to talk to him, but they didn’t have to know.

When they arrived in the middle of the field, only when did she decide to talk.

“She told me everything, you know,” she said to him. “About what happened before you left.”

He knew this was coming.

“Oh,” he mumbled.

Then she sighed. “Look, I know that you’re still undecided about what to feel for her, and she’s willing to wait all eternity for you.”

He took a deep breath. He already knew that and that’s why he’s trying to figure out everything as fast as possible.

“But,” she started. “I’m not letting her wait for you forever because if I find out you were just leading her on, then I will not hesitate to crush you. So you better be willing to hold that promise.”

Then she added nonchalantly, “Don’t think you’re not the only one who likes her. There are other guys out there waiting for her too.”

He looked at her in surprise, but he didn’t have time to ask her anything more when she called all the other members out on the field.

Someone, he knew what she said to him would stay on his mind for a long time.

End Chapter


	24. Waiting

Chapter 24: Waiting

She woke up feeling surreal that day. Actually, she’s been waking up and feeling like she’s in still in a dream for the past couple of days.

Could you really blame her though? He basically told her that he liked her, but he didn’t know whether it was true or if he felt more than being attracted to her.

It was as if, he wanted to return her feelings to her, wanted to return the same love she’s willing to give him, wanted to be worthy of her.

That, right there, could just bring the butterflies back to her stomach.

She rolled onto her side and got her phone from the nightstand near her bed. She looked to see the time and realized it was already half past one in the afternoon. Well, it was no surprise actually. She was up late last night talking to Ayame. Her cousin was retelling her accounts of how the boys were doing in their practices that she joined in.

She already knew for a long time that she was going to be helping them train. She was the first one Shiori-chan ran to when Coach Mikami first emailed her. She wasn’t exactly expecting Coach Mikami to know where the fuck Ayame was, but when Shiori-chan explained that she might have told Wakabayashi-kun where her cousin would be and then everything made sense. When she read the whole email, she gave the go signal to Shiori-chan to give Ayame’s email address. It would be funny seeing the boys’ reaction when they find out that Ayame would be helping them train in their last two days before the tournament. Ayame could be a slave driver sometimes, and she could just imagine what she would make those boys do.

But, now that she thought about it, Ayame helping them train was a good thing. They girls were in the same boat last year and they were lucky enough to get into the finals, even more miraculous by winning with penalty kicks.

So theoretically, if both boys and girls played the same style of soccer from their countries, then Ayame could really help them and give them tips on how to play against their opponents. But really, that’s just in theory. They couldn’t really predict the future so they just have to play their soccer like they always do and win.

But she still couldn’t help but laugh as she tried to imagine the boys shiver in fear from Ayame’s training and sadistic chuckles.

She got up from her bed and immediately stretched, trying to get rid of the knots she got while she was sleeping. After that, she immediately got clothes from her closet to change into for today. As much as she wanted to stay in her pajamas, she really couldn’t seeing that she would helping out in the shop again. Summer this year proved to be really hot and everyone just wanted to have something to cool them off. She couldn’t even remember how many cold beverages and food she served since summer started.

Besides, the boys’ first match was this afternoon at 5 and everyone decided the shop was the perfect place to watch it because of the huge ass TV plastered on their wall. Of course, her mom was willing to provide the shop, just as long as they buy something. She was letting them stay longer than necessary just so they could watch the match, which meant that the shop would be jam packed, and have some of their customers go to another place to eat. She knew their customers would understand, they were avid fans of soccer as well, but man were they going to lose lots of money by having them leave.

Everyone was more than happy to pay though, because they said that they could never say no to Nakazawa cooking.

She went downstairs to their main kitchen, deciding to just get some break-er, brunch there instead of cooking herself some food. That seemed like a waste of resources to her if she could just eat some of the food downstairs.

“Well, look who’s awake,” her mom greeted her as she arrived the big kitchen. “How was your sleep? You were up pretty late again.”

She said her greetings to all their staff before giving her attention to her mom.

“Ayame was telling me how she had fun tormenting the guys in France,” she replied as she took a seat around the kitchen island.

“Was she now?” her mom asked as she put a plate of sandwiches before her.

“Yep,” she answered as she took one of the sandwiches and proceeded to take a bite out of it. “Apparently, she’s been preparing them for the worst that could happen in the tournament.”

“Huh, I would have thought that it was Tsubasa-kun that kept you up all night again,” Haruka remarked nonchalantly as she continued to blend a smoothie.

She choked on her food as everyone in the kitchen chuckled and laughed at her misfortune. Noriko-san, one of their cooks, was kind enough to give her a glass of water.

“Mama!” she exclaimed in embarrassment, her face flushed.

“What?” her mom retorted. “I’m just saying. That’s what you’ve been telling me for the past couple of days. How should I know it was your cousin this time?” She added as she finished the smoothie and gave it to one of their servers to give to their customers.

“But the way you said it…” she complained. “You make it sound like we were doing something inappropriate!”

“Are you?” her mom teased again.

“No!” she denied vehemently. “What made you think that?”

“Well, isn’t that what teenagers are doing these days?” her mom answered. “What was that thing called again? Sexting was it?”

“Mama!” she cried again, scandalized. “We do not, and never will be doing those kinds of things! And how do you even know of such a thing?”

“Well, that was what Ayame’s mom been telling me through email,” her mom replied. “Apparently that’s the trend with hormonal teenagers right now in America. I figured this might be happening to Japanese teenagers as well.”

“I think I read somewhere online that that’s actually true,” one of their part time high school students, Yui-senpai, remarked as she came in the kitchen. “Besides, some of my friends also told me they do that sometimes with their boyfriends.”

“See?” her mom looked at her smugly. “I never know, maybe both of you were doing that thing without us knowing.”

“Ugh, Mama we’re not even dating!” she cried. “And even if we were, we’re never going to be sexting.”

“We’ll see about that,” she winked at her. “You never know what happens in the future. You can never make sure with hormones and all that

She rolled her eyes and took one last bite from her sandwich. “Whatever, Mama. I’m a hundred percent sure that will never happen.”

Everyone in the area laughed as she put her plate in the sink.

“Whatever you say, my little seedling,” her mom retorted. “Now, why don’t you make yourself useful and get out there. We have people waiting out there.”

She stuck her tongue out at her mom, who only laughed at her childish actions. She rolled her eyes again, but this time with a smile on her face. She loved her mom greatly because she knew how to have fun. She knew it was hard looking after her all by herself as well as running the shop. But, even if her dad wasn’t with them anymore, she turned out fine.

She tied the apron around her and washed her hands before proceeding to move into the shop area, asking one of their servers, Kaito-san, if they needed any help. He directed her to one of the tables, where two boys where sitting.

They looked new. Nankatsu was a small town, and almost everyone knew each other here, or at least she’s familiar with all the faces in the area.

She gave a nod towards Kaito-san and told him she would take care of them. She took a pen from the nearby cup and proceeded to the table with the two new boys.

“Hi, welcome to Sweetie’s Cafe,” she greeted them cheerfully. Now that she had a good look at them, they looked like brothers. Both of them seemed to be around her age, but the one on the left seemed to be a year younger than her.

“Hello,” the younger two greeted her back warmly. The older one seemed only care about what was outside. Eh, whatever, she’s fine as long as someone was talking to her.

“I hope you don’t mind me asking, but are you guys new here?” she asked politely.

“Oh, yes we are,” he answered, surprised. “How did you know?”

She chuckled, “Nankatsu’s a really small town, and almost everyone know each other here. I didn’t recognize you guys at all so I thought you guys are new.”

“That sounds nice, knowing everyone I mean,” he remarked. “My family and I moved here yesterday and my brother and I decided to familiarize ourselves with the place.” Then he gave her a smile. “I’m Koizawa Kaoru and my older brother here is Subaru. Nice to meet you.” He turned to his brother and nudged his hand. “Come on, nii-chan. Say hi to her.”

The older one finally turned to look at her and their eyes met for the briefest of seconds before he gave her a nod. “Hello,” he said to her. “I’m Subaru.”

She gave them both a smile and introduced herself to them. “Nice to meet you guys too! I’m Nakazawa Sanae. If you need any help getting around town, don’t be scared to ask me.” The two nodded their heads as she took out the pen and paper from her apron’s pocket. “So what I can get for you two today?”

The two brothers gave her their orders and she quickly wrote them down on the paper. She then said to them that she would be back with their orders as soon as possible.

She had a feeling someone was looking at her, but she only shrugged it off.

She gave their orders to the cooks, with them answering they would have the order ready soon.

In a matter of minutes, the food was ready and she found herself putting down the orders of the two brothers before them.

“Here you go,” she told them. “I hope you enjoy your food! Payment would be at the cashier.”

She gave them one last smile before leaving to attend to other customers.

If she would have looked back at the table, she would have seen Subaru staring at her in fascination.

She didn’t noticed time pass. When she first looked at the clock it was only three in the afternoon, and the next thing she knew it was almost five already.

As she expected the shop was packed. Everyone was already seated and had their attention on the TV, waiting for the tournament start. Japan was playing the first match against Italy and she knew everyone was ready for revenged when she told them about the brush off that the Italian did to Japan.

She looked around to see who exactly was here. She saw the boys in front of the TV, already assessing the foreign players that were coming out. They were trying to figure out who would be advancing and who would not. The adults sat behind the younger people, but they were as excited they are watching the game. After all, their children was in the Japanese team. She spied the Oozora’s near the back, but they were still close enough to see the game. They must be so proud of Tsubasa for being another step closer to his dream.

She was snapped out of her thoughts as she heard everyone cheered and roared. She looked towards the TV and saw the reason why they suddenly became loud, the Japanese team was finally walking out to the field, Tsubasa leading them.

It’s only been a few days since she last his face, but her heart never failed to swell in happiness whenever she saw him.

“Anee-chan look!” Daichi exclaimed excitedly as he pointed to the TV. He was sitting on the counter where the cashier was. He was accompanying him from where she was behind the counter, ready if ever someone wanted to pay. “Onii-chan’s on TV! Doesn’t he look cool?”

She ruffled his hair playfully. “He is,” she chuckled.

“They’re going to be awesome!” he exclaimed again. “I just know it. They’re going to win.”

“Of course they would be, squirt,” she told him. “They aren’t called the best for nothing.”

Daichi beamed and nodded as he turned back to the TV. He couldn’t wait until he saw his brother play against those weird looking people.

She grinned at the boy’s enthusiasm and she too went back to the TV. They all finished introducing the countries and they were about to start the first match.

She was pulled back into her thoughts as they zoomed in back on Tsubasa, the announcer talking about how he expects Japan would do with Tsubasa leading them.

_“Wait for me.”_

She took a deep breath as he remembered those words. It wasn’t exactly the words she expected to get from him. She only thought that he would reject her, since her confession did come out of nowhere. But, he told her that he might feel the same for her, and he said that he just needed time to think things through.

And she was more than willing to give him that, because knowing that he might like her back was better than nothing. Besides, he needed to think about soccer first.

The whistle blew to signify the start of the match.

She would give him all the time in the world, because no matter how long, she’ll wait for him.

End Chapter


	25. Inch by Inch

Chapter 25: Inch by Inch

He looked out the window and saw the Pacific Ocean glittering underneath them. Man, this brought back memories. It wasn’t even a year ago that he was met with the same scenery. Except this time, he wasn’t coming back from Brazil, he was coming home with an International Title.

His experience in France was amazing. Not only did he get to play with everyone, but he also went against strong players. Of course, he had experiences playing with strong foreign players, Brazil was known for its soccer players, but European players were a league of their own. He couldn’t wait until they all meet again on the field, and hopefully it would be at the World Cup.

But right now, it would be great if he could rest for a while. That last game with Germany kind of made his shoulder hurt again, and with Nationals and Junior Youth Tournament occurred one after another, it left him exhausted. When everything finally passed, only then did he feel the fatigue.

But most of all, he could have the time to think about everything, about them.

He was actually lucky he didn’t lose that much concentration during their matches. What Ayame told him before the start of the Tournament really bothered him. He didn’t know why though.

He knew he shouldn’t be surprised that other guys would like her. She was smart, funny, friendly, and beautiful, so he could understand why others would be attracted to her. It’s just really stupid of him to be bothered by it.

But he always felt irritated when he tried to see her in the arms of someone else. He couldn’t stand the thought of her sending those smiles to someone else, those eyes looking at another person the same way she looked at him, those words being said to someone other than him.

And he was never more relieved to know that such person didn’t exist. Yet. Hopefully never.

He knew he was sounding like a possessive boyfriend already, even though they weren’t dating yet. Officially anyway. Hopefully soon.

He just felt that he wanted to wait a little longer, because he wanted to return her feelings back wholehearted, to say those words back to her with the same passion she had for him, because she deserved nothing but the best, and he was more than willing to give her that.

Until he was sure that he would give her all he could offer, would he finally say those words back to her. Until he could definitely say that he was completely, undeniably, madly, deeply in love with her, because that’s what she deserved.

He took out his phone and browsed through his pictures. He scrolled through them, until he finally saw what he was looking for.

He couldn’t help but smile whenever he see this picture.

It was the two of them, back when they were celebrating both of their victories in that one yakiniku restaurant. She was holding his phone at arms’ length as she tried to fit both of them in the screen. Their grins were huge and bright, clearly showing much they were enjoying the celebrations. He couldn’t even believe that he was in a slump earlier that day. She always knew how to cheer him up.

He also knew she always had a gorgeous smile and he was lucky that he would be able to see it whenever he could.

“That’s a cute picture of you and Anego.”

He jumped in surprise hearing Misaki-kun’s voice and almost let his phone slip from hand. Good, thing he had fast reflexes.

He turned to his friend who he hadn’t notice to have woken up from his sleep. He was quite nervous seeing the look his friend was giving him.

“When did you guys take it?” Misaki-kun asked, surprisingly without any tone of teasing in them.

He scratched his cheek as they continued to stare at the picture. “It was on the day we had our celebrations.”

“You guys make a great couple,” Misaki-kun remarked nonchalantly, but he knew that his friend was onto something.

He felt his face heat up as he refused to meet his eyes. “D-do we?” he faked innocence, kneading the back of his neck. “I never thought of it like that before.” That wasn’t really a lie. He never did think of anything like that before, but ever since _that_ night, it’s been on his mind countless of times.

Misaki chuckled from beside him. “You’re such a bad liar Tsubasa-kun,” he said cheekily.

He could only gave him a wry smile. He knew he could never keep something from his quiet friend.

“You know, I never did believe what you said when we found out that you were chatting with Anego,” Misaki told him. He already locked his screen again, feeling for it absentmindedly as he listened to him. “About nothing happening between the two of you.”

He took a deep breath, but didn’t reply to what his friend said.

“Sometimes, you get this far away look in your eyes,” Misaki said to him. “And there were times too that you unconsciously feel for Anego’s charm on your chest.”

He was honestly surprised that he did all those things.

”And I figured Ayame-chan must have said something to you that made you frown more than necessary when you think no one was looking.”

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. It was no use lying to Misaki-kun. Out of every one of them, he was the most perceptive.

“I- we never exactly told this to anyone yet, except when she told Ayame, but I haven’t,” he admitted.

Misaki-kun widened his eyes. “So something did happen?” he asked in a hushed whisper.

“Yeah,” he answered pathetically. “More or less.”

“Well, come on,” Misaki-kun nudged his side, “Tell me what happened. You’re getting me excited.”

He chuckled at his excitement, but it quickly died down when he took a gulp.

“Sanae-chan-she,” he licked his lips, “She confessed to me the night before I left.”

Misaki gave a sigh of disappointment from beside him. “I thought you guys finally started dating.”

He scowled, “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Well, what do you think it’s supposed to mean?” he retorted back cheekily. “No offense, Tsubasa-kun. I think out of everyone you’re the only one who haven’t noticed how she felt for you. Everyone could see how she had this one smile reserved for you, the longing looks she gives you when you’re not looking, and sometimes, she gets this face when a girl tries to talk to you, which is actually pretty amusing.”

He didn’t even noticed it, but he was smiling. He was smiling because, she was still into him even him if he was oblivious to all those things she did.

“So, what did you say?” Misaki-kun interrupted his thoughts. “You must have given her answer, didn’t you?”

He sighed as he licked his lips. “I- I told her to wait.”

“Why?” His friend asked incredulously. “I can see you like her too, so why didn’t you tell her that?”

He ran a hand through his hair again in aggravation. “It’s not that easy,” he admitted. “She told me she was in love with me. All throughout the years I wasn’t in Japan, she held on to all her feelings for me. If we started dating then and there, then she might have think I’m only dating her because I felt bad for her. I don’t want her to think that. I want her to know that yes, I feel the same way, that I am certainly, irrevocably in love with her too.”

Misaki could only stare at his friend for a few seconds before he bursted in to chuckles.

“Who would have thought that underneath your one-track soccer mind, that you’re actually a huge romantic,” he teased.

“H-hey!” he spluttered in embarrassment, “S-shut up!”

Misaki only continued to snicker at him, but it soon died down and he patted his shoulder. “But seriously, that’s pretty nice of you.”

He scratched his cheek sheepishly. “I figured that if I’m going to return everything she felt, then I should return equal to what she did, if not maybe more.”

Misaki-kun only chuckled again and leaned his head back on his seat. He looked at him at the corner of his eyes. “But if you asked me,” he started with a smile. “I think you’re already in love with her.”

He only gave him a grateful smile.

* * *

When they all got back to Nankatsu, all of them decided that taking a long nap was what they all needed. It was a miracle they could even escape from their friend’s clutches, seeing that they all were in the airport, welcoming them back from their trip as well as barrage them with questions about their matches again the foreign teams. He was never more grateful that his mom saw how the six of them were exhausted and told everyone that all of their questions would be answered sometime later when all six of them finally had some rest.

He really did wanted to see his friends, but at that moment he just wanted to sleep.

But she was the only one he wanted to meet. Unfortunately she wasn’t there, no matter how hard he tried to find her.

It seemed like his mom realized what he was doing, that he calmly whispered to him that she wasn’t there. She had to help out with the shop since one of their cooks was sick that day and she had to fill in for her.

He tried not to look disappointed, but his mom only giggled and patted his arm, telling him he would see her soon. She then teased him how much he was acting like a boyfriend who couldn’t wait to see his girlfriend.

He could only splutter how they weren’t dating at all.

When he got home, he was fortunate that Daichi was taking his afternoon nap because he didn’t think he could keep up with his little brother’s never ending energy.

After greeting his dad and having some talk with him, he excused himself to his room to finally get that much needed sleep.

He should have really thought about that nap though, because now he couldn’t sleep. It also didn’t help that he woke up at 8:24 at night.

He tried to back to sleep, but found out he couldn’t.

Writing a quick note to his parents, he left it on his desk and another one on the dining table, he went out of the house for a walk.

He didn’t notice it, but his feet led him towards Hikarigaoka Park. And just like last time, someone was there. _She_ was there.

She was sitting on the grass, looking up to the stars, again. She was wearing a thin shirt and some shorts, hugging her knees. He couldn’t help but ask himself how come she didn’t feel cold at all. It was pretty chilly tonight.

At first, he didn’t know what to do. The last time they did saw each other in person, it was a little awkward. And he’s not counting those times they texted each other. It was still different talking face to face.

He took a deep breath and took a step, the scrunching of the grass reaching her ears, making her turn to where he was.

They stared at each other wide eyed for a long time, surprise written on their faces. Then she smiled at him.

He felt his heart skip a beat.

“Hi,” she greeted him.

“Hey,” he said back as he walked to where she was. He tried to ignore the fast beating of his heart as he took a seat beside her.

“You’re up late,” she remarked when he was comfortable enough. “I would have thought that you’d be snoozing at this time, seeing that you just came home.”

“I took a nap right when we arrived,” he shrugged. “Now, I couldn’t sleep and I’m still suffering from jet lag. It is technically still two in the afternoon in France.”

She chuckled from beside him, and he couldn’t help but love hearing it again.

“Good point,” she replied.

They were suddenly surrounded by silence, but it wasn’t uncomfortable at all. They didn’t say anything as the both of them watched the stars in the sky.

“Welcome back, by the way,” she said. “I wanted to come to the airport to see you back personally, but Noriko-san called in sick and we didn’t have any extra cooks I had to fill in.”

“It’s fine,” he told her. “I know how busy you guys can get.”

“But I already missed the first one, and I really didn’t want to miss this,” she whined. “This one’s also better because you guys won the tournament too.”

“Hey, really it’s fine,” he assured her, and she was about to say something again, but he interrupted her. “But if you really want to make it up, you could always make me some cookies again.”

She stared at him incredulous, but then she suddenly laughed.

“Of course, you would want cookies,” she teased. “But then I have to make everyone cookies.”

He shrugged again. “I’m sure they won’t complain. They would take everything you cook.”

“That’s true,” she agreed with a chuckle.

There was another silence between them.

“You did great in there, you know,” she said. “In the tournament I mean.”

“Thanks,” he replied. “But it wasn’t just me. Everyone did great too.”

“Of course they did,” she said. “But you were the one did the best, in my opinion. You did lead them to victory.

“I wouldn’t exactly say I did the best,” he chuckled sheepishly. “Everyone gave everything they got, and we won because of that.”

She chuckled again because of his humility. “You’re too humble sometimes,” she told him. “But then if you weren’t, I would have ditched you already.”

“I shouldn’t change then,” he replied with a smile.

They both shared a laugh before they became silent again. They turned back to the stars, gazing as they twinkled quietly in the sky.

He was just staring at the stars mindlessly, but all of a sudden, he felt something soft on his cheeks.

”Congratulations on being a step closer to your dream.”

When he realized they were lips, _her_ lips, it was already gone and when he turned to look at her, she was already standing up, stretching her arms above her head.

“Man, that stretch felt good,” she remarked as she walked a few feet away from him. “But damn it’s cold.”

He stared at her incredulous before she looked towards him with a soft smile.

“Let’s go home, Tsubasa-kun?” she asked.

He stared at her some more, before he smiled back.

“Yeah,” he answered as he stood up. He walked towards her and laced their hands together. He didn’t need to see the confused look on her face turn into a smile.

They started to walk back home and all throughout, they never separated their hands from each other.

               


	26. Confusion and Unwanted Circumstances

Chapter 26: Confusion and Unwanted Circumstances

She was so happy that they didn’t have morning practice that day, because she hadn’t adjusted her sleep schedule back to normal. This always happen during summer. She always stayed up late just to read some of the manga she follow. Granted, she’s not as addicted as her cousin Ayuri, Ayame’s twin sister, but she just couldn’t put those down once she started. Ugh, not to mention how many tears she shed just reading those. Stupid shoujo manga.

She was leaning against the table near his desk, listening as the five of them chatted before class starts. Ayame was apparently berating Tsubasa-kun from how reckless he was on some parts of the tournament, and she didn’t even let the two other boys defend him because she eventually scolded them too, hitting their heads with rolled up papers. She’s really taking this coaching thing seriously.

She only chuckled at her cousin’s reprimanding of her boys because if she was willing to admit it out loud, there were times that she wanted to go to France and punch each and every one of them for some of their careless actions. And don’t even get her started on that match with the host country. They almost gave her a heart attack!

She looked at the clock in front of their classroom to see how many minutes they had left before class started. Huh, seven more minutes, that’s a lot of time.

Speaking of what’s starting. She began to wonder how the Koizawa brothers were doing. They were supposed to start school too, with Kaoru-kun going to Nankatsu Middle and Subaru-kun would be coming to where she was, Nankatsu High. She hoped that they wouldn’t feel out of place.

She was really grateful for the two of them. She didn’t know if she would have stayed sane from all those matches of it weren’t for those two. They managed to distract her from worrying about the boys too much in their games.

They took up her offer of letting her help them get familiar with everything in the town, showing them what Nankatsu has to offer. Of course, that included the never ending soccer fields littered all over the place. Seeing the fields made Kaoru-kun tell her something they forgot to tell her at the very beginning.

They were apparently extraordinary soccer players, and Subaru-kun was part of the U-15 team last year when they competed in Argentina. He also led the team all the way to the semifinals, and lost to Spain with a close match of 2-3. They apparently moved to Shizuoka just because their parents wanted them to enrich their soccer talent, and seeing that Nankatsu won Nationals, this year, they picked this little town.

It was odd though that Subaru-kun wasn’t part of the U-16 team this year. Actually, when Subaru-kun told her the other players of the U-15 team last year to see if he knew anybody, it turned out she didn’t know anyone at all. But if they’re that good, then was it that nobody got picked from that team this year?

Huh, maybe because it wasn’t Katagiri-san who picked the team last year.

“Sanae-chan?” Tsubasa’s voice snapped her out her thoughts. She felt something warm on her hand and saw that he grabbed a hold of it. She looked up to see everyone looking at her in concern.

“Are you okay?” he asked her worriedly. “You haven’t said anything at all for the past few minutes.”

She waved her free hand to ease them of their worries. “I’m fine you guys,” she assured them. “I was just thinking about something.”

“Ooh,” Ayame said mischievously. “Did you forget to do one of the assigned homework we need to do?”

She rolled her eyes. “I finished all our homework right after Nationals,” she replied. “Maybe it’s you who didn’t finish that homework.”

The boys all snickered as Ayame gave her a glare. She was about to retort something back, but the bell beat her to it.

“This isn’t over yet, dear cousin of mine,” Ayame warned. “Just you wait.” Then she turned around and stomped back to her desk.

“Looking forward to it,” she called out cheekily, to which Ayame only ignored.

The two other boys also said to them that they should be go towards their seats before their teacher arrives. She was also about to do the same, but she was stopped when she felt him squeeze her hand.

“Are you sure you’re alright?” he asked again with the same worried tone.

She chuckled and squeezed his hand back. “I’m fine,” she answered again. “I was just really thinking about something. It’s not even that big of a deal.”

“If you say so,” he said uncertainly.

She chuckled again. “I’m sure,” she assured. “I gotta go before sensei comes,” she told him. She took her hand away but she couldn’t help but want to grab his hand again, missing his warmth. “I’ll talk to you later.”

She barely saw him nod his head as she rushed to get to her chair, this time on the third row of the second to last column because of their new seats for the new term.

She made it in time, because just a few seconds after she took a seat on her chair, the door opened to reveal their homeroom teacher.

“Okay, everyone, settle down,” she said to them as she started to walk towards the middle of the room. She seemed to be in a good mood. Her date from before probably turned into dates.

She stopped right in front of the teacher’s desk and put her hands on her hips. “Good morning, my lovely children,” she greeted them cheerfully. “Hopefully you all had another fun break!”

“Because you got a good one right?”

“It was more than fun,” she exclaimed dreamily. ”Huhh, I can just remember what we did thi- wait, why am I telling this?”

”You’re the one who started saying those things to us, sensei!”

Their teacher blushed furiously, and they all laughed at her reaction. This was just the perfect thing to start the new semester.

She coughed as she willed her blush to die down. “Anyway,” she said loudly. “I have another set of news for you guys. We’re adding a new student to our class today.”

“Again?”

“Didn’t this happen last time too?”

“Why does our class always get the transfers?”

“Hopefully this one’s a girl this time.”

“Guys, settle down!” their teacher ordered them. “Just don’t ask any questions okay? Homeroom’s about to end soon and I haven’t even introduced him yet.”

Before the guys could whine anymore because, it wasn’t a girl again this time, their teacher turned towards the open doorway. “You can come in now.”

Hmm… wonder who this could be this time. The only person she knew who would be transferring would be-

Oh wait, there he was walking towards the middle, right beside the teacher’s desk.

Subaru-kun stood right before all of them, and she could only blink in surprise. Who would have thought that he would be transferred to her class of all things? It’s like what happened to the three boys all over again.

“Koizawa Subaru, nice to meet all of you,” he introduced himself as he bowed before them.

There was a moment of silence and their teacher took advantage of it. “Well, how about we sit you… beside Nakazawa-san?”

That seemed to have gotten Subaru-kun’s attention and quickly brighten up, his eyes darting everywhere around the room.

“Nakazawa-chan, can you please raise your hand please,” their teacher asked her.

“Hai,” she answered as she raised her hand. Subaru-kun turned to where she was and she failed to see the way he seemed to have breathing when he saw her. She turned towards to him and gave him a smile, and again didn’t notice how he seemed to have started breathing.

“You can sit on the empty desk beside her, Koizawa-kun,” their teacher said to him.

He gave a nod and silently walked towards the desk beside her. When he was finally settled, their teacher went back to addressing the whole class.

She turned towards Subaru with a small smile on her face. “Who would have thought you would be put in my class, ne Subaru-kun?”

“Who would have thought indeed,” he replied.

“Well, hopefully you take care of me,” she winked.

“I should be the one saying that to you,” he retorted.

She didn’t say anything back as they shared chuckles between them.

Is she would have looked back, she would have seen him watching them, a small frown on his face.

* * *

The day went by with nothing in particular happening, except maybe with Subaru-kun’s surprising transfer to her class. When lunch came, she had the full intention of introducing him to her group of friends (aka her boys and the other three first year girls), but apparently he had a friend who also transferred to Nankatsu with him. Niwaki Ryota-kun, and he also played soccer for the U-15 team last year. He moved to Nankatsu for the same reason as the Koizawa brothers did.

Since they both knew each other already, Subaru-kun said that he would just eat with Niwaki-kun, seeing that he didn’t want to intrude her group. Of course, she said they wouldn’t be intruding, and she even invited Niwaki-kun to join them, but they both declined. She didn’t want to force them at all, so she gave it up.

She was a little bothered by what they said though. Something about not really wanting to confront Katagiri’s players so early.

She just shrugged it off and went to everyone was, already in the process of starting to eat.

But really though, if they wanted to join the soccer club, they could have just eaten with them. She was sure that if the boys found out they both played soccer, then they would be welcomed with open arms.

Well, whatever. They could all just meet each other when the both of them turned in their application form.

Their afternoon practice ended really early that day, and she couldn’t help but be shocked by it. Even everyone was surprised by it. The only ones who weren’t really surprised by it all were the third years as they shared snickers with each other. Except Akane-buchou. She was in a daze the whole time, and never have they since her so absentminded ever. She wasn’t pushing them to play harder at all, or coaching them on what to do. She was literally in a different world than them.

When they tried asking the third years what was wrong with their captain, they shared smirks with each other and just answered that something happened to her on Tanabata. When, they tried to get some more out of them, that was when Akane-buchou told them they could go, still in that daze.

Well, they weren’t exactly complaining so they headed her dismissal and started towards the clubroom to get their stuff.

She didn’t really want to get home yet, so she decided to go to the boys’ field to see how they were doing on the first day of practice. Ayame decided to join her, since she thought it would be funny making fun of their unsuccessful plays again like she did in France.

She could only shake her head at her cousin’s sadistic nature. One day it’s going to bite her in the ass, she was sure of it.

When they arrived in the field, it seemed like the boys were also having an easy day like them. Of course they were still playing soccer, but it wasn’t as intense as usual when they were preparing for Nationals. With the some of the bitter second years leaving, the team wasn’t that big as before, but you could see they were all having more fun, especially the first years. Those second years were probably tormenting them behind the third year’s back and when they were finally gone, everything seemed to be livelier.

She was about to take a seat on the slope, but didn’t when she saw who were across from her, watching as the boys practice.

Subaru-kun and Niwaki-kun were watching, with Takano-senpai talking to them occasionally, probably telling them how the club works. They must have turned in their application form right after school.

She smiled and told Ayame to come with her, who already made herself comfortable on the grass. Of course, she whined but stood up nonetheless, grumbling as she followed her to where she was going.

She arrived to where Subaru-kun and Niwaki-kun right after Takano-senpai left to attend to something.

“So, what do you guys think about the boys?” she asked as she appeared right beside them.

They looked up in to surprise to see her.

“Nakazawa-chan!” Niwaki-kun exclaimed in surprise. “Y-you’re wearing-“

She knitted her eyebrows in confusion and looked down to what she was wearing. Oh yeah, she was still in her practice clothes and cleats. She got too lazy to change out of them.

“Yeah, I guess that’s one way to find out I’m into soccer as well,” she chuckled.

“I didn’t peg you to be one,” Subaru-kun remarked. “But why am I not surprised?”

She chuckled from their reactions. “Better to make use of them soccer fields,” she replied cheekily. “So what do you think?” she gestured to the boys again.

“They looked strong,” Niwaki-kun answered. “But I can’t believe that they actually won Nationals this year. Not to mention they led Japan to win the Junior Youth this year.”

She turned to where Niwaki-kun’s eyes were and she couldn’t help but smile. Ayame was already with the boys, talking and teasing them. He was facing away from her, she knew he was laughing along with everyone else.

“You’ll be surprise, Niwaki-kun. There’s more to them than meets the eye.”

With that she left the two, and ran up to the boys, ignoring their confused faces. She jumped on Tsubasa’s back, laughing as she did it, and forced him to give her a piggyback. He stumbled forward, but instinctively had his hands support her, laughing as well.

If she would have looked back, she would have seen Subaru-kun frowning.

End Chapter


	27. Insecurities

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks to everyone who's giving me kudos

Chapter 27: Insecurities

Nothing happened that much in school for the last two weeks, except maybe them finding out that Akane-buchuo and Takano-senpai were dating. That was a shock. But then again, they don’t know what exactly was going on with the third years so maybe it’s been a long time coming.

Though it was adorable seeing them holding their hands together one day, with Akane-senpai trying so hard not to blush and looking away while Takano-senpai continued to hold her hand tightly, chuckling at all of their surprised faces.

But, when she saw the look they shared when they thought no one was looking, she knew how in love they were.

She’s not willing to admit it, but was kind of jealous of them.

Maybe someday she would have that kind of relationship too.

But she shouldn’t be complaining. He’s almost there. He just needed some more time. She knew that he was taking it slow, and she was more than willing to give him that.

It was enough for her that he was willing to give them a chance.

Besides, she couldn’t help the giddy feeling she gets whenever she tried to remember what they’ve done in summer.

She would never forget that one time she kissed him on the cheek under the stars. She couldn’t understand how she had the courage to even do that, so she tried to play it cool, but when she turned back to him, he was as surprised as she was. What he did after though, was one of the things she refused to forget.

That was the first time she realized that their hands fit perfectly.

And maybe soon, she didn’t have to constantly look for his hand because it would be in hers before she even realized it.

Though hopefully no one noticed how close they had become, because really she didn’t want all the teasing from their friends. They’re already troublesome as it was, with them constantly jibing her about her feelings for the soccer prodigy.

She sighed and turned back to watch the field. They were having the try out matches to see who could be able to join the regular line up this season since the third years were retiring to focus on college exams. So far, this match has been dominated by the regular second years and third years. They didn’t seem satisfied with the second and first years they were playing against.

It’s not that these players were terrible. They were pretty decent. It’s just that Nao-buchou (Akane-senpai gave it back to her after Nationals, just like in junior high) wanted to win the title again this year and she wouldn’t accept anyone who couldn’t meet her requirements. Looks like they have to wait for the first years again next spring.

Though, either way, they would still be able to win the Autumnal Prefectural Cup since Shikogo wouldn’t join such a small league. It’s too demeaning for their taste or something.

The whistle blew to end the match and she looked to the scoreboard to see how the non-regulars did. As expected they were decimated by the regulars win a score of 7-3. Hey at least they scored. It’s only a matter of who the upperclassmen think are acceptable enough to be in the team.

But she couldn’t help but feel bad for them though. Once spring comes, they have to give up their positions since the first years they were waiting for were coming.

She wondered if this was also going to happen in the boys’ team. Of course, Ishizaki-kun, Takisugi-kun, and Morisaki-kun would definitely make it into regulars and she’s sure that they wouldn’t be taken off the line up. There weren’t exactly any great incoming first years for the boys. She’s pretty sure her boys would stay in the regulars.

But then again, there was Subaru-kun and Niwaki-kun. They tried out the day before and she was lucky enough to watch them play, and damn were they good. They could even make the Golden Combi a run for their money with how they great their pass work was.

No wonder they were in the U-15 last year.

“Oi, Sanae-chan!” Chieko-senpai called out to her. “Can you come over here really quick? We need your input.”

It must be something about the players they would pick for the team. Though she didn’t really want to do it, the team needed the new members. Might as well do it for everyone’ sakes.

“I’ll be right there!”

* * *

Koizawa and Niwaki were great players, that he would admit. The way they handle the midfield was great and Koizawa can easily switch from offense into defense while Niwaki’s passes were always precise. Their teamwork could even be as great as his and Misaki-kun.

He was always excited to play either with them or against them because he didn’t usually find players like this in Japan, his other friends from different prefectures weren’t counted. The two of them were always sharp and alert, ready to get the ball and attack with it.

They were amazing players that he couldn’t help but ask himself why they weren’t picked for the U-16 team. Even Misaki-kun and Wakabayashi-kun also noticed this detail. He didn’t want to ask because that seemed a little rude.

And besides, whenever he tried to approach Koizawa-kun and Niwaki-kun, it seemed like they didn’t want him talking to them. It’s not that they were antagonistic towards him. They just have this tone of iciness to their voice whenever he tried to talk with them. Actually that only happens when they, the members of the U-16 team tried to be friendly with them. Anyone else was okay with them.

Koizawa even seemed to stare at him intently whenever he was on the field and he wasn’t. It was like he was judging him or something. As if he was focused on finding faults on his play. Of course he knew he still has room for improvement, but having Koizawa’s eyes on him was a little bit nerve wracking because he didn’t know whether he wanted to help him or he wanted to use his weaknesses against him.

Hopefully, he didn’t do the latter because that would just make him someone he would not like at all.

He was watching them as they played the try out match against the third years, regulars and non-regulars. Koizawa’s shoot barely passed Morisaki-kun’s hands, but it was a goal nonetheless. He made this goal after receiving a superb pass from Niwaki. They’re pass work was shown again and he knew that both of them would have a spot in the bench. Though he wasn’t sure that they would be starting players. They do still need to prove to Takano-buchou that they could replace him and Misaki-kun, and so far it seemed like they haven’t done it yet.

He couldn’t help but get a bad feeling about it though.

Especially Koizawa. He didn’t exactly know what he did to him, but for some reason he thinks that he did something wrong to the guy that made Koizawa watch his every move.

It didn’t help that even out of the field, he was constantly staring at him.

But he was with Sanae though, everything changes around him. His eyes would stray from him and land on her, and solely on her, as if she was the only one that mattered in his world.

That didn’t bode well with him, but he ignored it. He knew someone was bound to start liking her, Ayame did say that there other people who was attracted to her, Koizawa would be one of them.

He just didn’t like it when Koizawa was getting closer to her. He knew he shouldn’t act that way, they weren’t even in a relationship to begin with. But the fact that she seemed to be having fun being with him was a little concerning.

He was jealous, and he knew it.

He just hopes that she wouldn’t change her feelings for him, because he knew he wouldn’t be able to change his for her.

* * *

They were laying down on the grass on Hikarigaoka Park, gazing at the stars again. They’ve been doing this for quite some time now, ever since that kiss on his cheek. It seemed like that they agreed silently that they would meet up here every night since it was the only time they could really freely talk without anyone trying to tease them about their relationship.

She loved these times though. Here, they could do whatever they want without anyone seeing them. They could talk about whatever without anyone hearing them. They could just be what they wanted to be with only the stars and the night sky to see.

They were cuddling right now, with her head on top of his shoulder while she wore his sweatshirt. Since it wasn’t that chilly when she arrived earlier, she decided not to bring a jacket or something. It turned out to be a very stupid decision seeing that it was almost the end of September. Of course it was bound to be cold at night.

Good thing he was such a nice guy that he was willing to lend her his sweatshirt. Of course, he did tease about not bringing her own.

She just kicked him in the shin.

Right now, she was telling her about that one time Ishizaki-kun angered a crab on their trip to the beach. Their bald friend was too hot blooded to just let it go when it popped their soccer ball and just ignore the equally hot tempered crustacean but he didn’t. The crab then clapped on his toe and they all had to calm down from laughing first before they could help him get it off.

She would never get tired of hearing his laugh and feel his chest rumble from his guffaws.

Then she turned on her stomach and had her hand support her chin.

“Speaking Ishizaki-kun,” she started as he looked up to her. “Did they get in as regulars?”

“Hmm…” he hummed in thought. “Well, I don’t know if being added to the bench count as a regular position, but if it does, then yes. Although, Takisugi-kun is a starting defender in the next game.”

“Sweet,” she exclaimed with a smile. “So who else got in?”

“Well, Morisaki-kun is the second goalkeeper right after Wakabayashi-kun. Ishizaki-kun could be a starting defender soon. Takano-senpai hasn’t really confirmed anything yet,” he told her. “Though you be surprised at who they picked to replace Takano-buchou as center forward. They picked Koizawa-kun.”

“Huh?” she knitted her eyebrows together. “But I thought he played as an attacking midfielder, like you. I saw him play one day and he and Niwaki-kun dominated the midfield.”

“That’s what I thought too,” he answered as he looked up the sky. “But Takano-senpai asked if he would be alright playing as a forward and he agreed.”

He didn’t tell her the look he gave him back then that screamed that he would take the midfield position from him.

“Huh,” she said as she laid back down on her back. “I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. He was part of the of the U-15 team.”

She felt him shift beside and all of the sudden he was on his side, his arm supporting him.

“He was part of the U-15 team?” he asked her.

Oh right, they didn’t know yet.

“I forgot to mention it, didn’t I?” she replied back to which he only nodded at patiently.

She sighed and sat up, curling her legs to the side. “Well, his little brother told me that little tidbit when I was giving them a tour of our little town. I was honestly surprised myself, because I would have thought Subaru-kun would be in France with you guys.”

“Huh,” he said as he laid his head on her lap. It was just instinctual for him to do that. Actually even cuddling seemed to be very instinctual for them. “Well that seems weird. Koizawa-kun does have the talent to get into the U-16 team. I wonder why he wasn’t picked.”

“Oh there’s more to it,” she added. “The whole U-15 from last year weren’t picked for the U-16 this year. I asked Kaoru-kun who was in the team and I don’t know anyone at all.”

“That’s…”

“Uh hmm,” she hummed in response. “I think it wasn’t Katagiri-san who picked the U-15 team. Kaoru-kun told me that he didn’t know Katagiri-san at all.”

“But if it wasn’t him, then who picked the team?”

“I don’t know,” she shrugged nonchalantly. She was idly running her hand through his hair, barely noticing the look on his face.

“You know, Katagiri-san told us that we were the golden age of soccer players on Japan,” he started. “Do you think that there more of us waiting to be discovered? And if so, do we deserve to be the in U-16 team?”

She stopped her hand and gave him a soft look. “Of course you do, you big dummy. Who cares if another person deserved to be pick? Katagiri-san picked all of you guys for a reason because he believed in you guys. And what happened? You guys won the tournament. If that doesn’t show how deserving you guys are worthy, then I don’t know what will.”

Then she gave a light tap to his cheek. “Besides, the U-15 team lost to Spain in the semifinals. You guys beat France and Germany, which logically speaking are better than Spain.”

He blinked up to her twice, before smiling cheekily. “You’re such a dork, you know,” he told her.

She wrinkled her nose in annoyance and he was caught off guard when she suddenly pushed him off her lap.

“If that’s what I get for cheering you up, then go make yourself happy,” she said as she stood up and started to walk away from him.”

“Hey!” he exclaimed as he stood up as well, trying to catch up with her. “I was just kidding!” he called out.

“Whatever you soccer meathead!” she replied as she continued to walk farther away.

“Come on I was joking,” he said as he jogged up to her. “I’m sorry.”

“Apology not accepted.”

“Well, sheesh if I just knew you were that sensitive. I wouldn’t have said that.”

“I am not sensitive! You just ruined the mood! You were supposed to say something like, ‘Thank you. I don’t even know what I’m going to do without you’”.

“…That’s sounds stupid.”

“Just like you.”

“Hey! You know what just for that, I’ll taking my sweatshirt.”

“Nuh uh! I’m keeping it until we get home.”

“You’re the one who insulted me. And besides, it’s not even cold. Why do you want to keep it longer?”

“Because it smells like you.”

“…That was uncalled for.”

“Are you blushing?”

“N-no! I’m just cold.”

“But you just said it’s not cold.”

“J-just shut up and just keep my sweatshirt.”

Her laugh was the last thing they heard as they walked home, swinging their hands that were laced together.

End Chapter


	28. New Semester

Chapter 28: New Semester

The cherry blossoms floated all around her as she walked into their school, ready to begin the new school year. Who would have thought that it a year would have already passed since she started high and here she is now, on her first day as a second year in Nankatsu High School. Man where did the days? It seemed just like yesterday she entered Nankatsu as a first year.

It seemed like yesterday that she found out that he was coming back to Japan.

But it’s already been months since he was back, within than short amount of time, already a lot has happened.

Both of them let Nankatsu win Nationals. He also led the U-16 All Japan Junior Youth win the International Junior Youth League. They’ve won the Autumnal Prefectural Cup.

She also confessed to him in that span of time. And although he was surprised by her confession, he said that he was willing to give them a chance, and just wait for him until he could return her feelings wholeheartedly.

It was something she couldn’t believe, but with all those nights under the stars, their hands intertwined as much as possible, and the secret looks they shared, it was really the truth.

“Oi Anego!”

She looked to see who called for her and wasn’t surprised to see Ishizaki-kun waving for her from where he was by the boards. Ayame, who left her back in the streets because she thought she was too slow, was already on the sides, talking to their huge group of friends. She probably already saw what class she was going to be in this year and was stalling time before school starts.

She quickened her pace and reached her friends, greeting them all a good morning.

“What took you so long?” her cousin demanded. “It took you five minutes longer than necessary. You should have been here at least two minutes ago.”

She stuck her tongue put to her before replying. “I wanted to take my time getting here.”

“Well you sure did because now it’s harder to search the board for your class. It’s already congested around there.”

Before she could reply she felt an arm wrap around her shoulder.

“Yo,” she looked up to side to see Tsubasa, who finally arrived. “What’s up everyone? What’s all the fuss about?”

“Well, good morning to you too, sunshine,” she greeted him with a smile, pinching him lightly on the cheek.

Usually, their friends would take this chance to tease both of them by how close they are right now, but for some reason they never said anything, ever since they started showing how comfortable they were being near each other.

Although she did sometimes see the smile they get whenever the two of them did something very couply.

“Apparently, Ayame thinks that the area around the boards it too crowded for us to see which class we’re going to be in this year,” she calmly explained as she released his cheek.

Tsubasa turned away from her to look where the boards are. “Woah, that is a lot of people.” He exclaimed. “Most of them are taller than us too.”

“My point exactly!” Ayame interrupted. “You’re going to be late if you guys don’t see it in time.”

The two of them looked at each other and blinked.

“Piggy back?” Tsubasa asked her.

She nodded, “Piggy back.”

She then turned back to her cousin and offered her back to her. “Hold my bag for a sec, will you?” Tsubasa asked the same thing from Misaki-kun.

The two took it from them in confusion, their other friends mirroring the same expression. Their puzzlement only fueled when Tsubasa kneeled on one knee while facing away from her.

She quickly jumped on his back, and he standing just as quickly. After making sure that they were both comfortable she exclaimed:

“Charge my mighty stead! We need to see what class would be before school starts!”

And Tsubasa followed as he ran towards the boards, with her on his back, laughing all the way.

If they looked back, they would have seen Ayame smacking her head with her hand.

“Those two are such dorks,” she mumbled to herself.

“Well, what can you expect?” Wakabayashi crossed his arms. “It’s Anego and Tsubasa. She’s the only one who can really make him think of anything that’s not soccer.”

“Right, because you guys can.”

Wakabayashi only glared at the petite girl who smirked in victory.

He only scoffed before turning back to the two, who were still by the board trying to get a glimpse of their classes.

“Did you find our names yet?” Tsubasa asked as he tried to peer over the other students’ heads, all the while trying to keep Sanae from falling. “My back’s starting to ache from holding you.”

“Just a suck it up for a little longer, I’m close to finding it,” she assured him as she glanced at all the names on the board. “There we go! I found them. Hey, would you look at that. We’re in the same class again this year.”

“Really?”

“Yep,” she answered. “Our names are even right after each other.”

“That’s awesome.”

“I know,” she said as she put her chin on her head. “Now come on, horse. We should get back to where everyone so we can tell them about this before we go to class.”

“Fine, fine your highness,” he grumbled as he walked them away from the crowd towards their friends.

“Look whose back,” Izawa remarked as they reached them again. “How was your ride on your mighty stead, Anego?”

“It went well, Izawa-kun,” she answered as she jumped down from Tsubasa’s back, who gave their friend a small glare. Izawa only smirked back.

Misaki gave Tsubasa back his bag, which he took back gratefully. “So did you guys find out your classes?” he asked.

“Yeah,” Tsubasa replied. “Apparently both of us are in the same class again this year.” Then he glanced Sanae who was beside him. “Though she never did told me what class it would be.”

“Class B,” she told him without skipping a beat and turned back to her conversation with Ayame, Shiori, and Rika.

“Gotcha.”

Misaki sighed in disappointment. “That’s a bummer,” he remarked. “It’s a shame we won’t be the same class then.”

“That is a bummer,” Tsubasa agreed. “So what class are you in then?”

“Class A,” Misaki answered. “With Mr. Grumy,” he gestured to Wakabayashi who glared at him, he ignored it, “and Ms. Sarcastic over there with Anego.” he pointed to Ayame who cried an indignant “Hey!” in offense. Misaki just gave her a smile to which she huffed at. “Shiori-chan is the only sane person I have to keep me from going mad.”

“I hope you step on a Lego,” Ayame grumbled which Misaki only rolled his eyes at.

“The others are also in different classes,” Misaki explained to him. “So I guess it’s just you and Anego this year.”

Misaki then gave him a sly look. “At least you guys are alone. Hopefully you’ll manage to get a grip with yourself and finally get together with her.”

Tsubasa blushed lightly and elbowed his friend. But he took a glance to Sanae, who was laughing at something Taki said.

“Yeah,” he said with a tender smile, something that Misaki didn’t fail to notice. But he didn’t say anything. He trusted what Tsubasa will decide.

“Sanae-senpai!”

They heard a voice call out to her.

They all turned to look at the direction at where it came from only to see an unfamiliar girl (to the three of them anyway. It looked their friends knew her) running towards them, wearing Nankatsu’s High light blue uniform. Her yellow ribbon she had on clearly signified she was a first year.

“Senpai!” the girl cried as she latched on Sanae, with tears on her eyes. “I finally found you. Oh I miss you so much.”

“There, there Miho-chan,” she comforted sheepishly. “Didn’t you just see me yesterday back when you visited the shop with your little sister?”

Miho looked up to her, sniffing her nose. “But that was so long ago!” she sobbed and hugged her again. Sanae could only sigh in defeat and hugged her back halfheartedly.

“Who’s she?” Tsubasa whispered to Misaki, who shook his head to signal that he didn’t know the girl.

“Wow, Miho, I can totally feel the love,” Ayame remarked as she went to her cousin and the first year.

Miho unlatched herself from Sanae and flung herself to Ayame. “Ayame-senpai,” she cried as she hugged the girl tightly.

“Too tight, Miho,” the older girl gasped. “I can’t breathe.”

Miho only gripped on her tighther as Ayame looked towards them, asking for help.

Sanae only smirked and gave her a peace sign, as if saying that Ayame was the one who got herself into it, she should be the one to get out of it.

Luckily, Miho caught a glimpse of Shiori who was discreetly trying to hide behind the tall Wakabayashi to no avail. The first year quickly let go of Ayame and jumped towards Shiori.

“She seems pretty close with you guys,” Tsubasa remarked just as Sanae moved to stand beside him.

“Oh, Miho-chan?” she replied. “Yeah, she’s one of the first years we’ve waiting for this year. We had a problem on how we were going to keep Nationals for the second year in junior high and luckily, her and a few others appeared.”

“They must be good if they could have kept up with you guys,” he said to her teasingly.

“Considering that they did win Nationals for Nankatsu for the fourth year in a row,” she looked to him from the corner of her eyes in the same manner. “Then yes, they’re that good.”

She almost laughed out loud from seeing his jaw dropped, but managed to keep it in by looking away from him and biting her lip.

“Oh my gosh, is that really the Oozora Tsubasa standing beside Sanae-senpai?” Miho gushed in front of them.

Oh god, he hoped she’s not going to be his fangirls. They were already as bad as it was. Just remembering Valentine’s Day gave him shivers.

“The one and only,” Ayame confirmed.

Miho’s eyes sparkled brighter than before. “They look so much cuter in person!” She said as she turned back to Ayame.

Wait, what?

“Aren’t they, Miho-chan?” Shiori said to the first year. “We think it’s only a matter of time before they hook up. They’ve been closer than ever.”

Miho squealed in response and turned back to them, which unintentionally made him flinch and move closer to Sanae.

“My name is Akazashi Miho, Tsubasa-senpai,” she introduced herself enthusiastically. “And I think you and Sanae-senpai make a cute couple. Also, the children you guys will produce will gorgeous.”

Uh…

He didn’t even need to see that both Wakabayashi and Misaki were dumbfounded as he was.

“Okay, Miho-chan,” Sanae said as she stepped before him. “That wasn’t really an ideal way to introduce yourself. Not to mention embarrassing some people. But why don’t you just run along for now and meet up with Fuyumi-chan and Kimiko-chan. Class is about to start too.”

“B-but Sanae-senpai-“

“Now, Miho-chan.”

Miho sighed dejectedly. “Fine,” she pouted. “We’ll be by the soccer field in the afternoon to turn in our application.” With that, she ran from them, but there was a certain bounce in them that just screams happiness.

“Well, now that’s over with,” she turned back to them. “Why don’t we all get to our classes before we become late? And get rid of that smirk Ishizaki-kun. You look more like a monkey with it. Also, stop sniggering Taki-kun. It makes you sound like you’re having breathing problems. I don’t really want to run you to the hospital on the first day of school.”

“A-anego!”

She then turned away from them and started to walk forwards. “Chop, chop everyone. Time waits for no one. Let’s go.”

The last thing he heard before he followed her was Ayame whispering (to Misaki probably), “She’s so flustered right now.”

He would agree, but even he was flustered. Who just tells people that the babies they would make would be gorgeous?

Though, it was comforting that other people see them look good together.

He finally caught up with her and walked alongside her.

“So,” he started. “Apparently our babies would look gorgeous huh?” though he still couldn’t help but tease her further.

In an instant she flushed a light pink. “Oh god, can you just ignore Miho, please,” she pleaded. “She- she’s fascinated by human genetics and she wants to be a geneticist when she grows up so the first thing she thinks when she meets someone are the traits they could pass onto their child.”

He laughed and threw an arm around her. “Hey, at least we know our children would be great.”

That- That came out wrong.

“…Should I look more into that, or?“

“Yeah, let’s that talk about something different.”

“Agreed. Let’s do that before we embarrass ourselves any further.”

He took his arm from her shoulder and they started to talk about something different, something that didn’t involve talks of what their children would be (when) if they have them.

They were in the middle of talking about how fast Daichi’s been growing when they reached their room. They took a quick look to the seating chart taped on the blackboard and was surprised to see that they were seating beside each other.

Huh, that’s weird.

“Ah!” Sanae exclaimed from beside him. She was looking somewhere while he was still skimming the seating chart to see who would be in there class. “Subaru-kun, you’re in this class too?”

Well, at least they know one other person. Though Koizawa wasn’t really someone he wanted to be in there class.

There was just something off about him whenever he was near Sanae. His demeanor would change, his tone would get softer, and his eyes would get tender whenever he looks at her.

It was just like the look he gives her whenever they were alone.                     

He knew then, that Koizawa liked her.

Sanae walked towards where Koizawa was, and he followed because apparently, the three of them were sitting side by side, with Sanae in the middle.

He took the seat on Sanae’s left, while she was facing her right talking to Koizawa.

Koizawa peered to him over Sanae’s head and their eyes met. After a few seconds, Koizawa turned his attention back to her, listening as she chattered about his little brother.

Koizawa might think that he might have a chance, but he was sure not going to lose.

End Chapter


	29. Changes

Chapter 29: Changes

They were in the soccer field training one last time before they give up the field for the soccer try out matches they would be doing for the positions they have open. Though he didn’t really think they need it. With their current line up, he was sure that they could get Nationals against for the second time.

Even if Koizawa did make him apprehensive sometimes. It was really Sanae’s fault for taking the time to talk to him. Now Koizawa wouldn’t stop glancing at him whenever they talk as if gloating that she was talking to him at the time instead of him.

He was really confused why Koizawa would look at him like that. He didn’t really have any problems with other guys talking to Sanae. His friends talk to her all the time! What made Koizawa any different? Aside from his obvious attraction to Sanae, he’s just like any guy out there.

No, what Misaki said about him looking annoyed whenever they talk was not true. Don’t listen to him.

Moritaka-buchou just gave them a short break and he took that moment to get a drink from his water bottle.

He was in the middle of taking a sip when something caught his eye.

Koizawa and Niwaki was talking to someone and judging by his clothes, he seemed to be pretty well off. The three of them seemed to be in good terms, seeing the smiles on their faces.

Though in the end, he shrugged the whole thing off. It’s not his business to know what they were talking about.

He wiped the water that leaked from his mouth with his hand and was about to return back to the field when he heard his name being called.

He turned around to see Katagiri-san standing by the sides of their field, raising his hand in greeting to them.

“Katagiri-san!” he exclaimed as he ran towards the man.

“Hello, Tsubasa,” the older man greeted as he reached him. “I see that Nankatsu is doing well. I figure that all of you are aiming to win Nationals this year?”

He chuckled and rubbed the back of his head. “That’s what we’re all hoping for,” he admitted. Then he turned around to look at everyone. “Though with our line up right now, I think we can make it,” he said as he returned his attention back to the older man.

Katagiri smiled at his statement, happy that Japan’s ace was so enthusiastic about everything. He looked back towards the field Tsubasa’s other teammates, the friends he gathered when he was still in grade school. It’s been so long since started observing them, and look at them now, winning an international tournament for Japan.

He knew and believed this group of soccer players will bring glory to Japanese Soccer.

That is, if another person didn’t think otherwise.

He glanced from the corner of this eyes to see that _man_ talking to two other high school students. He could feel their stares all the way from here. He was surprised that _he_ would be here in Nankatsu, since Katagiri knew that his players wouldn’t be here at all. But when he saw those two, everything made sense.

Those two were part of _his_ U-15 team after all.

“Hey, Tsubasa,” he started. The young soccer player turned to him. “I noticed you guys have new members. Though I don’t remember seeing them before.” He said as he turned to him and the two other high school students not on the field.

He was lying of course, he perfectly knew who those two were. How could he forget them? They were the ones who led Japan throughout the U-15 tournament.

They were the team who gave the Brazil a hard time after all.

“Oh, Koizawa-kun and Niwaki-kun?” Tsubasa remarked as he followed Katagiri’s gaze. “Yeah, they’re pretty new to the team. They transferred to Nankatsu right after summer break last year. Though only Koizawa-kun got in last autumn since we needed a center forward for the tournament. The try outs tomorrow would see if Niwaki-kun would be out of the bench for this year’s line up.”

“Hmm,” Katagiri said. He kept staring at them and Tsubasa turned back to the Football Association member in confusion.

Katagiri continued to look at them, until _he_ finally returned his gaze from the corner of his eye. They held their stare off before Katagiri finally looked away and turned back to the player before him.

“I’m sure that whatever you guys decide will give higher chances of Nankatsu to defend the National Title,” he told Tsubasa.

“Right!” Tsubasa agreed enthusiastically. “I’m sure we will win again this year.”

“That’s the spirit,” Katagiri-san told him. “Well, I better be going. I still have things to do.”

“Oh don’t let me hold you back,” Tsubasa said in concern. “I’m sure they’re more important than just talking to someone like me.”

“It’s always a pleasure to talk to you,” he assured the young man. “Besides, you are the future of Japanese soccer. I should be doing this more often.”

Tsubasa gave out an embarrassed laugh and scratched his head. Katagiri gave him a smile in return and patted his shoulder.

“So, I’ll be returning sometime soon to check up on Nankatsu,” he said. Then his smile turned flat. “Though, you have to promise me that you would be your team’s ace until you graduate okay.”

“S-sure,” the boy answered uncertainly.

Tsubasa really should. With those two here in Nankastu, it would be hard for him to keep his position. Especially with Koizawa already in the team.

And if that guy continued to visit regularly, then there would be some major fighting for the representation for the World Youth.

“Well,” he started. “I’ll be going them. Continue to work hard, okay Tsubasa?”

“Hai!”

He finally said his goodbye and left the field, ignoring the stare from him and his two players.

Tsubasa watched as the Football Associate walk away from the field. He was actually a little anxious from what Katagiri-said. It’s as if he already knew how great Koizawa and Niwaki were, and was warning him about them.

He looked towards the two and noticed that the man they were talking with was gone as well. Then his eyes met Koizawa. He was staring at him intently, and he returned it.

They continued it for a while, as if they were challenging each other of something.

“Oi, Tsubasa come on. We need to get back to practice!” Ishizaki’s voice interrupted.

He blinked and turned away from him.

“Coming!” he replied as he ran towards the field.

Whatever Koizawa’s challenge might be, he sure as hell won’t be losing.

* * *

The phone call was supposed to be harmless really. He just needed to ask her something about the homework they received earlier this day, but before they knew it, it’s already been an hour since they started talking. He didn’t even know how they got into the topic of _Totoro*_ from figuring out an algebra formula.

He had his phone between his cheek and ear, typing away on his laptop because she wanted him to look up an alpaca (an animal he just found out from her) plush toy. He had no idea why he was even doing this.

 _“See? Aren’t they just adorable?”_ her voice gushed from the other line. He didn’t need to see her face to know that she was probably in total euphoria about this whole thing. _“Have you seen the light blue one? It’s so cute! I want one so bad.”_

“Don’t you think you’re taking this plush toy thing too seriously?” he remarked as he clicked on the said light blue one.

 _“All plush toys are serious business, mister,”_ she replied hotly from the other line. _“You know how much I love them. They’re my babies.”_

He chuckled as he checked the price of the plush. Her birthday’s coming up. This might be a great gift for her, considering how much she’s gushing about it. Besides, he did need to make up for the three years that he missed.

That and what she gave him for his last year was worth more than three years of missed birthdays.

“I heard,” he answered as he placed an order. He needed to remind himself to tell his mom of what he ordered. It would save him from the embarrassment when she suddenly finds a plush alpaca in the mail. “Taki-kun did say that your whole room is littered by them.”

_“Oh they’re everywhere! You really need to see my room so you can bask in the glory of my shrine of plush toys.”_

“I’ll pass,” he said quickly as he opened his email to see if he got the email from the online store confirming his purchase. He did see it, along with another email.

“Oh hey, I got an email from Roberto,” he informed her. Immediately he opened it and read its contents.

He’s been contact with Roberto over emails and calls ever since he left Brazil. Occasionally, they would even video chat if their schedules permitted. It was always great to hear from his personal coach, even if they’re on opposite sides of the world. He did take care of him for all the years he was in Brazil, and taught him almost everything he knew about soccer.

 _“Really? That’s awesome!”_ she said. _“So what did he say this time?”_

“You know, the same ‘how are you’s’ and greetings,” he answered as he read through the email. “He’s also been telling me how the team has been since I left. Remember the friend I told you about? Carlos Santana?”

_“Yeah, I think. Wasn’t he the one who used to play soccer without feeling anything?”_

He nodded absentmindedly, forgetting that they weren’t face to face. “Yeah, but I managed to show him how soccer could be fun.”

_“If you hadn’t I would have disowned you.”_

He stopped reading, “You can’t disown me. I’m not you’re son.”

 _“All Anego Boys are my children, whether they were abroad or not,”_ she answered promptly.

“How does that work? We didn’t even know that it existed.”

_“Well-“_

“Nevermind,” he interrupted. “Let’s just stop before we even go on another tangent and I get a headache.”

_“True.”_

He sighed and went back to reading. “Anyway, Santana just sighed a contract with one of the teams in Brazil. Man, I’m jealous.”

He heard her chuckle, _“Don’t worry, Eagle. I’m sure you’ll get your time. Hey there’s only two more years before you go back. Have fun for a while.”_

He too chuckled and was almost done with the email. He couldn’t believe what he read by the end.

“Holy shit, Roberto’s coming,” he accidentally swore out loud.

_“For real? Isn’t he kinda busy coaching?”_

He reread the last part again. “That’s what I thought too, but it seemed like he could have some form of short vacation before going into a new job.”

_“Huh. That’s cool. At least you guys can see each other again after one year.”_

“Yeah,” he agreed, starting to type a quick email back to Roberto. “I would have thought I wouldn’t see him again until I come back, but fortunately fate has other plans.”

She laughed heartily but then he heard her swear on the other line. Immediately, he stopped typing and held his phone.

“Are you okay?” he asked in concern from her cry.

 _“Yeah, I’m fine,”_ she answered breathily. _“Just my phone telling me that’s going to lose its life soon. It’s probably telling me to plug it in and hang up.”_

“Better follow it then,” he told her as he resumed typing.

 _“But I still want to talk!”_ she whined, almost sounding like Daichi. _“I don’t want to do stinking homework.”_

He chuckled as he clicked the “send” button on the screen. “Who does? Anyway, speaking of homework. It’s your fault I’m not done yet.”

She made a fake scoffing noise. _“Fine, I can hear when I’m not wanted.”_

“Hey, don’t be like that,” he said. “It’s not that I don’t want to talk to you. I just gotta finish homework so I can get it over with.”

 _“Okay,”_ she replied back with a sigh. _“I know what you mean. I guess I’ll do homework too.”_

“And maybe when we both get done earlier than expected, I’ll call you next time,” he told her.

_“Promise?”_

He smiled. “Promise.”

 _“Okay!”_ she exclaimed enthusiastically. Well, that was an easy mood change. Huh, she never ceased to amaze him _. “I guess I leave you to the monsters called homework.”_

“That’s one way to describe them.”

_“It’s the truth!”_

“Sure,” he conceded. “Anyway, I really need to get back to homework. So I’ll talk to you later?”

_“Yup! We’ll talk later since my phone is five minutes from dying anyway. Ja ne!”_

He chuckled as he said his goodbyes to her. When the beep that told him that the conversation was over, he took the phone away from his ear and laid it on his table.

He went back to his laptop to reread the email. He was happy that Santana getting the contract. At least his childhood didn’t deter him from soccer. He was even more thrilled to find out that Roberto was going to coach the main Sao Paolo team.

But with all that happening, things are bound to change in Brazil.

They want him back for next season.

And for the first time in his life, he didn’t want to go back to Brazil yet, because _she_ wouldn’t be there.

End Chapter


	30. Gifts

Chapter 30: Gifts

Contrary to popular belief, she did indeed know that Subaru-kun liked her. She would have been a hypocrite if she couldn’t notice someone liking her. She was stuck for three years liking someone who wasn’t even in Japan, when she could feel shy stares directed to her. Of course she would know when someone liked her.

That’s why she was trying so hard not to lead Subaru on. It would be completely unfair for the guy, thinking he had a chance when she knew that he didn’t because she honestly and completely in love with someone else.

But, so far it didn’t seem to be working.

Sure, she talked to him in class since they did sit beside each other, and he was also in the soccer team, but that was it. They could chat about the simple things, like how he adjusted their family was to Nankatsu, or how Kaoru-kun was doing as a member of the Soccer Club now that he’s in high school. She didn’t give out any hints that she had feelings for him. She just wanted him as a friend, that’s all.

His stares never stopped and she didn’t know what to do anymore. So, she just left everything as it is, and refrained from talking to him unless it was for pleasantries.

Though, right now she should stop thinking about that problem, or any of her problems for that matter. It’s her birthday after all. She shouldn’t be thinking about any negative stuff. As her mom would say, it’s all about her, so she there shouldn’t be anything that would make her upset today.

And apparently, she was having a party, whether she liked it or not.

“Knock, knock,” Ayame said as she peered into her room. “Are you alive? You haven’t gone out of your room since you took your shower. In fact, are you even read- never mind, I can see you aren’t.”

Yeah, thinking about those things did leave her with just a towel wrapped around her body for cover. In her defense, she was looking for something to wear before her thoughts decided to move on more problematic things. Though she had no idea how in the world she got there, when she was looking through her closet.

“I don’t know what to wear,” she answered simply as she took a seat on her bed. That was a lie, she got distracted by her thoughts and yeah she didn’t feel like picking clothes out.

“Sanae, your party’s about to start in two hours,” Ayame reprimanded her like how a mother would to a child. “The least you can do is get dressed while everyone of us are preparing our asses off for this day.”

“But I really don’t know what to wear!” she whined while she unceremoniously laid on her bed. She didn’t even care that her towel might unwrapped anytime. It’s just Ayame anyway.

Her cousin sighed deeply and rubbed her temples. “You have a fuck ton of clothes, almost as much as me and you don’t know what to wear?”

“For the record, most of my clothes were things you picked out for me that I have no clue what occasion I’m going to wear it for,” she remarked as she continued to look up her ceiling.

“Fine, I’ll pick out the clothes for you, you overgrown child,” Ayame grumbled as she rummaged through her closet.

She should actually be calling her cousin that, since she’s the one who usually gets into temper tantrums. She just didn’t want to pick out clothes.

“Thank you my amazing cousin,” she replied as she stood up, getting some underwear from her drawer.

“Well, someone needs to be fashion savvy between us,” Ayame said as she laid down a light blue dress, a white cardigan, and some white ballet flats on her bed. “There, that should be perfect for the birthday girl.”

She looked at them and raised her eyebrows. “Where did you find those? I haven’t seen any of them before.”

“How can you? It’s all the way inside, a place which you don’t usually venture in, and also where most of your dresses are hidden,” she deadpanned.

“I think that’s where I put most of the clothes you wanted me to buy,” she remarked offhandedly as she cut the tag off the dress. “Huh, this actually looks pretty cute.”

“Of course it’s cute!” Ayame roared at her. “I picked it.”

“Sure,” she conceded as felt the dress. Wow, it’s pretty soft too. Why didn’t she ever wear this before? Oh right, because she probably just put it in her closet and bought it just save herself from Ayame’s bitchiness. Besides, she rarely wore dresses. She preferred shorts and capris. Speaking of shorts, she needed to find some spandex to wear under this dress.

“Now that that’s over with,” Ayame began as she walked towards her door. “Get yourself done getting dressed and I’ll be back to do your hair and makeup.”

Woo, makeup. That would be a pain to take off. Let’s all hope she wouldn’t forget to take it off before she sleeps or else her face would break out in hives of pimples.

“See you in 30 minutes as we finish cooking downstairs,” Ayame called out as she got out of her room.

“Okay,” she replied as she put on the dress. Oh wow, its hella comfy. She missed a lot from ignoring this dress. No worries, she would never do such an act ever again.

She was just checking to make sure that her dress was in place when her phone suddenly rang. Quickly, she took it off her desk and looked to see who it was.

Well, look at that, it’s Tsubasa. Wonder what he wants.

“Hello?” she said as she answered the call. Instead of hearing his voice (which she was excited for. He was calling her! On her birthday!), she heard shuffling as he called for Daichi and started to countdown from three.

 _“Happy Birthday!”_ They screamed in unison. She laughed from their greeting as they made noises from the other line.

“Aww, thank you,” she replied when they finally stopped whooping and shouting. “It’s nice to hear from my favorite boys on my birthday.”

She heard his chuckle from the other and she could feel her stomach warming up just from hearing it.

 _“I figured that this way would be more memorable than compete with a bunch of people later on when they start their race of who greets you first,”_ he answered.

“Sneaky, aren’t you?” she remarked jokingly as she sat down on her bed again.

 _“That’s just how life is,”_ he replied nonchalantly. _“Anyway, that’s what we made the call for-_

 _“Anee-chan, Anee-chan!”_ Daichi’s voice interrupted him. _“You’re gonna love what we got you!”_

She giggled at his enthusiasm. He seemed more excited for her gifts than she was.

“I’m sure I will, Daichi-kun,” she replied.

 _“Ooh, you’re gonna love what Nii-chan got you too!”_ he added. _“He got you-“_

 _“Ah, Daichi!”_ he interrupted him this time. _“You’re going to ruin the surprise. Why don’t we let your Anee-chan find out later when we she opens them?”_

 _“Okay!”_ his little brother responded with the same energy, and then she heard the shuffling off feet.

“So, you got me something?” she tried to bring it up again she made sure he was back on the line.

 _“Of course, I did,”_ he answered.

Oh now, she’s even more excited for this day.

“Mind telling me what it is?” she prodded gently.

He laughed from the other line, and again she could feel the heat running through her body.

 _“Nope,”_ he replied. _“Better wait until later.”_

“What?” she complained. “That’s just mean, you’re getting me too excited for this and won’t even tell me to save me from this misery.”

 _“That’s what it’s supposed to do,”_ he chuckled teasingly.

“But it’s my birthday,” she pouted, although she knew that he couldn’t see it.

 _“Well, birthday girl, you just have to wait for it patiently,”_ he told her. _“Besides, your party’s about to start in what, an hour? It wouldn’t be that long.”_

“It is for me,” she whined. “Can’t you just give me at least one hint?”

 _“Nope,”_ he said.

“Please?”

_“No matter how much you plead, I’m not telling.”_

She pouted again. “Fine.”

He chuckled once more. _“Hey, cheer up. You’re going to get lots of presents in an hour. Just tough it out. You’ll have fun later.”_

She sighed and laid on her bed. “Why can’t later come sooner?”

 _“Don’t be like that,”_ he chided. _“You only celebrate your birthday once a year, after all. Take advantage of the time you have right now.”_

“I guess,” she replied. “At least I got to talk to you before all we get swamped by the others later on.”

_“See, one positive thing came from not having later sooner.”_

“Yeah,” she agreed. “But you make sure your still there later.”

What he answered made her grin larger than ever.

_“I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”_

* * *

 

The party started right as everyone got in the shop. Her mom closed it again just for this occasion. Though she didn’t think it was necessary, but her mom wouldn’t have any of it.

So here, they were, acting like a bunch of normal teenagers (with also a bunch of adult supervision, so yeah no funny business for them) eating like crazy from what her mom and the others cooked for them. She was so happy she took soccer because if she wasn’t she would have been overweight by now.

She was happy all her friends came to celebrate with her, and even Ayuri, Ayame’s twin sister, came. Though, she did mostly keep to each other, seeing that they’re all soccer dorks and she’s not that soccer savvy. Ayuri was more into anime and art animation.

It was a bummer

Anyway, since Ayuri was there, naturally her other relatives would be there, especially their grandfather.

It was a surprise though when they found out that it was their grandfather who hired Misaki-kun’s dad for the painting. Apparently, their grandfather saw one of older Misaki’s work in a museum and totally fell in love with it, so he told his secretary to contact him to ask if he was willing to do some more paintings for him.

Of course, Misaki-san was more than happy to oblige.

But now, that their grandfather found out that they all knew each other, he decided to drop more visits in Nankatsu just so he could see how Misaki-san was doing and give him an excuse to visit his family.

Though really, she thought that he would just do that so he could ran from work.

Moving on. They were all done eating the cake her mother baked for her. Man, she didn’t think she would ever get tired of eating her mom’s Vanilla Strawberry cake. No matter how much she tried to recreate it, it just wasn’t as good.

After eating, they ushered her to open her gifts. They seemed to be more excited for the gifts that she was. Well, whatever, she was grateful that they all got her presents, even when she told them that it wasn’t necessary.

She was opening her last gift, which she noticed was from Tsubasa. Actually, this was the one she was looking forward to opening, since from their conversation earlier today. But, seeing that Ayame was the one giving her the presents from the designated gift table, her cousin probably plotted everything.

It just also happened that he was sitting right beside her, another ploy by her cousin she was sure.

“That’s pretty big, Tsubasa,” Ishizaki-kun remarked as they stared at the paper bag she was holding. She had to agree. This was pretty huge. Man, she couldn’t wait to see what’s inside.

“You’ve given a lot of thought about this, didn’t you?” Wakabayashi-kun asked as he took a sip from his glass.

He shrugged from beside her nonchalantly. “Not that much,” he answered. “I just thought this was the perfect gift for her, so I got it.”

“Right,” Taki-kun sniggered and Tsubasa gave him a light glare. She also gave the forward a glare, but more menacing than what he gave him. That shut Taki-kun up.

“Well, go on then,” Ayame ushered. “Don’t leave us all having. I, for one, is getting anxious to see what Tsubasa got you. Hopefully it’s not something soccer related.”

“Same here,” Misaki agreed as Ayame gave him a high five.

“Hey!”

They all laughed at his offended cries, but it soon ended when she started to open the bag.

Holy shit, he got it for her! Oh my god.

“Oh my god, you bought it! For me!” She squealed as she took the light blue alpaca plush toy out of the bag. And it was the size she wanted too!

“Considering how much you’ve been gushing over it, I figured I might as well get it for you,” he chuckled as she gave it a tight squeeze. “There’s more too. It’s by its neck.”

She looked at the alpaca’s neck and sure enough, there was a small square box tied around its neck by a white ribbon. She untied it from the toy and took it in her hand, laying the plush toy on her lap.

She was curious on what it could be, so she gave him a look asking permission if she could open it, to which he gave her a nod.

She took a deep breath, and gently opened the box.

“Oh, Tsubasa this is beautiful,” she gasped as she saw what was inside. It was a silver charm shaped like wings, as small silver chains came along with it.

“Don’t hog it all,” Ayame told her. “I want to see.”

She stuck her tongue out at her cousin, but showed it to everyone nonetheless.

“That is really pretty,” Shiori-chan remarked as they all looked at it.

“Of course, it would be shaped like wings,” Wakabayashi-kun said. “Fitting.”

They all started to awe over the necklace as she showed it around and her mom asked him how he thought of this at all.

“Mom wanted me to come with her when she was looking for something to buy for Sanae, and we saw the set in one of the jewelry shop down town. We decided that she would pay for the earrings and bracelet while I woud buy the necklace. Besides, Sanae deserved the best.”

That earned him another bout of teasing from their friends, but he only ignored them with a roll of his eyes.

“You should try it on, Sanae-chan,” Rika-chan said to her. “In fact, you should have Tsubasa-kun put in on for you. It is his gift after all.”

Everyone agreed with her, with a few more jeers and teasing than necessary.

She blushed lightly and turned to him shyly. “Can you?” she asked.

He gave her a smile that never failed to make her knees week. “Sure,” he answered.

He stood up as she gave him the necklace, moving behind her. She lifted her hair with one hand and waited until he was done with clasping it together.

She released her hair once he said that it was done used Ayame’s phone to check how it looked on her, and sure enough it looked gorgeous.

She didn’t even know what came over her, or how in the world she didn’t realize that there was people with them, but in the spur of the moment, she gave him a quick peck on his cheek.

She also didn’t notice the surprise looks written on everyone’s faces, even his.

“Thank you so much,” she said to him, before returning to marveling the jewelry on her neck.

She was so happy with her necklace, she didn’t even hear the teasing that suddenly erupted from their friends, nor did she see the loving look he was giving her.

End Chapter


	31. Suspicions

Chapter 31: Suspicions

He wasn’t sure how to meet Roberto, really. On one hand, he was ecstatic to see his mentor again after almost a year. Roberto’s almost like a second father to him, after all. If it wasn’t for him, he wouldn’t be as great of a soccer player he was today. He owed Roberto a lot.

But on the other hand, he didn’t know what to tell Roberto, the new Sao Paolo coach _and_ his personal coach for that matter, that he didn’t want to go back to Brazil yet, that he wanted to stay for Japan for two more years, that he needed to stay in Japan.

That’s why waiting for his personal coach in the airport was nerve wracking. What the hell would he say hey to him?

Hey welcome back to Japan! By the way I can’t go back to Brazil yet. I have a girl waiting for my answer to her confession, which I’m about to answer soon. Thanks for understanding!

Definitely not. One, it sounded so stupid. Two, that was a poor excuse. Three, she didn’t need to be roped into his problems. That was just plain unfair for her.

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair and turned back to check the arrivals to scan the area for any signs of Roberto. There was a lot of people in the airport today. Well, it couldn’t be help. It is Sunday. It would be a miracle if he could find Roberto through all these people.

He leaned on the metal dividers and unconsciously trailed his hand to his cheek. Man, it’s been a week since her birthday passed and the tingling feeling he felt when she kissed him was still there. He didn’t even know why it was still there. It wasn’t like she hadn’t done it before. She did, back when he came home from France last year and won the International Junior Youth Tournament. What made this one different from that one?

Actually, now that he thought about it, that one lasted for a few days too, maybe even longer.

Damn it.

Argh, she was driving him crazy and he couldn’t help but find himself being okay with it. More than okay with it even.

Fuck it, whatever, he didn’t care anymore.

_“Flight 23109 from Sao Paolo via Los Angeles has arrived.”_

Great, Roberto’s plane finally landed and he still didn’t know what to say to him.

Whatever, he’ll cross that bridge when he gets there.

He might have not known what to say to his coach about certain issues, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t talk about anything else. Right when they met, the first thing Roberto asked was how he was doing and how great he improved when he left Brazil a year ago. Of course he answered, he did, wasn’t he reading his emails? They won Nationals with his help after all.

Roberto answered by putting him in a headlock and ruffled his hair.

They talked some more as they started to head to his home, which it would be Roberto’s home for the next three weeks before he goes back to Brazil and prepare for the next season. They told each other how they’ve been and he told him how everyone of his friends were far better in soccer than when he coached them back in when they were all in elementary.

All the way home, they traded stories, never running out of things to talk about.

For some reason, Roberto hadn’t brought up any talks about him returning to Brazil, which something he was really grateful.

The two of them got back to his house, expecting to be greeted by his mother and his little brother (who Roberto was excited to meet, seeing that he adored children, not to mention that Daichi was also another soccer child), and finally getting some lunch. Roberto did say that he couldn’t wait to eat his mom’s food.

“We’re back,” he called throughout the house. He was waiting for his mother’s voice to welcome them back, instead he heard little hurried footsteps and a small body crashing into him.

“Welcome back!” Daichi said as he looked up to him, excitement written in his eyes. Then he peered beside him, noticing Roberto. “Hello!” he greeted exuberantly.

Roberto crouched down to meet the little boy’s eyes. “Well, hello there, little guy,” he greeted his little brother. “You must be Daichi, then. You’re brother told me many things about you. I’m Roberto.”

Immediately, Daichi’s eyes widened and he became even more delighted, if that was possible.

“You’re Roberto?” he exclaimed in astonishment. “That is so cool! Nii-chan told me you taught him about soccer. Can you teach me too? Please? Please? Please?”

As he pleaded to the Brazilian, Daichi moved closer to him every time. He’s typically shy around strangers, but apparently they’re more alike than he thought. Just anything about soccer made him lose all that shyness in a blink of an eye.

Roberto laughed as he took his brother away from his mentor and carried him.

“I know you’re excited to have Roberto play with you, but why don’t we let him rest first?” he told him as they walked down the hallway. “He’s probably tired from all his traveling.”

Daichi pouted, but he conceded nonetheless. “Okay.”

“Don’t worry Daichi, I’ll be able to play with you soon, I promise,” Roberto told him.

“Yay!” Daichi exclaimed as he raised his hands.

The both of them laughed as they turned towards the living room, and he noticed something as he gave quick glances around the house.

“Where’s Kaa-san anyway? I don’t see her anywhere,” he remarked as he put his brother down.

“Kaa-chan went to shopping,” his little brother answered as the all took a seat on the couch, the TV showing a soccer game between the Yokohama Marinos and Urawa Reds.

He knitted his eyebrows in confusion. His mom left Daichi all by himself? “Mom left you all alone?”

“Anee-chan came over!” he replied enthusiastically.

“Anee-chan?” Roberto thought out loud. Oh right, Roberto still didn’t know Daichi speak.

“He means Sanae,” he briefly explained, and when he saw the confused look on his face, quickly added, “It’s a long story that everyone doesn’t want to explain.”

Then he turned back to his brother. “So Sanae’s here? Where is she?” he inquired. Okay, he really needed to talk to people about leaving Daichi all alone.

“Anee-chan went to-“

“Daichi? Who are you talking t- Oh!” they heard her exclaim in surprise as she came inside the room and saw them. “Oh, oh. Hi.”

“Is that really, you Sanae-chan?” Roberto said as he stood up.

She gave a shy shrug as she walked towards them. “The one and only.”

Roberto met her half way. “My, look at you,” he remarked as she gave him a hug. “The last time I saw you, you were still hanging out with the boys. Now though, you’ve matured compared this guy.” He pointed to Tsubasa who was playing with his little brother.

“Hey!” said boy whined as he looked over to them.

She giggled lightly and walked towards the two boys. “I still hang out with the boys,” she told him. “Someone has to take care of them, especially him,” she added as she ruffled his hair, to which he whined about again.

Roberto produced a laugh as Tsubasa complained that he wasn’t that bad, but even Daichi agreed with her that he was worse than he thought he was.

“Oh, he’s a handful alright,” he agreed as he took a seat on one of the chairs. “Honestly, when it comes to soccer, he just doesn’t know how to stop.”

“I’m not that bad,” he tried to deny weakly.

She snorted from beside him, ignoring his claim. “Don’t even get me started. Did he ever tell you what happened last year?”

Roberto leaned his body forward, having his elbows rest on his knees as he looked pretty interested about it. “No,” he answered, “What happened last year.”

She turned to the boy beside him as Daichi hopped on the couch to sit on her lap. “You didn’t even tell your personal coach about it? Really?”

“What, I thought he didn’t need to be bothered by such a minor injury,” he defended quickly.

Roberto watched as his student got reprimanded by the only girl in the room. But, his student only received his scolding with a teasing smile on his face, as if he wanted to rile her up even more. He did have to agree with Sanae that he should have taken of himself more. He needed to be in perfect shape before he comes back to start his career back in Brazil.

Speaking of Brazil, he would have thought that he would be excited to come back to South American country, seeing that he would finally be able to complete one of his dreams. But he didn’t say anything about it at all. He expected that right when he reached Japan, Tsubasa would give him his answer he would be coming back to Brazil.

He didn’t have a clue why Tsubasa would be hesitating for this opportunity.

But when he continued to watch Daichi and Sanae tag-teaming him into making fun of him, he might have figured a reason why when he saw how his student looked at the girl beside him.

And he knew then that Tsubasa had a tough choice to make.

* * *

 

Roberto told them that there was another reason why he went to Japan. Something about looking for this one high school player who was _Brazilian_ studying in Japan. This guy was apparently wanting to see how Japanese people play soccer after watching a young player play in a match.

She could understand if the guy wanted to just visit and play a game, but enrolling in a school so they could meet on the field again? That’s just a bit too much, not to mention a little obsessive. This Japanese dude better be one hell of a soccer player.

But then again, she was friends with the greatest soccer players Japan ever bred (they’re called the “Golden Age” for a reason), so she shouldn’t really be surprised. And apparently according to last year’s U-15 team, there’s a whole ‘nother team that were just as great.

Wow, what did the people of Japan eat to produce soccer prodigies to appear in this generation?

But she’s not complaining. If they weren’t soccer obsessed freaks of nature, they wouldn’t be the friends that she knew. He wouldn’t be the person she was in love with.

She plopped on her bed and hugged the plush he gave her close to her. She got home a while ago from his house once his mom returned from grocery shopping. Of course, the Oozora matriarch, and Roberto for that matter, to stay longer, but she declined politely, reasoning that she it would be the perfect time for Tsubasa to catch up with Roberto or for the older Brazilian to take a rest from all his traveling.

She did make them promise to come by the shop anytime.

Speaking of Roberto, she had this weird feeling that him visiting has more reasons that what he told them. Sure, she believed that he was looking for that Brazilian dude in Japan, and also to visit the family who took great care of him when he was in Japan, but something didn’t feel right. Especially about the young Brazilian. It was as if he needed to gather information about this guy for something important.

And also, when he talked about the new job he got as the new coach for Sao Paolo, he sends this little glances to Tsubasa, as if trying to see a reaction to come from him. Tsubasa for his part, was ignoring the small signals. She didn’t know whether he was doing it on purpose, or he just didn’t notice them.

She thought that she knew why Roberto was giving those looks to Tsubasa and she hoped and prayed that she was wrong.

She felt for the charm he gave her on her neck, absentmindedly playing with it.

Please don’t let him leave so soon.

End Chapter


	32. Close

Chapter 32: Close

Their grandfather decided that they didn’t need to go to the manor for Golden Week, thank the lord. Instead he would be the one visiting them this year, so he could see how Misaki-san was doing with his paintings. But really, their grandfather would just really be at their home most of the time.

She was happy that she didn’t have to leave Nankatsu for the week, but ugh she had to go to practice. Don’t get her wrong, she still loved to play soccer, but unfortunately for her soccer obsessed friends, she could live without the ball, for a few days.

Just kidding, sooner or later a ball would find its way to her feet. She couldn’t live without at least kicking it once.

So here she was, dribbling a ball back and forth with Ayame, all geared up for practice today on the first day of Golden Week. Man, she couldn’t wait to come today. They had a training match against the boys, since most of their official matches are starting after Golden Week, they decided a game between them wouldn’t be harmful. Besides, they’re not playing an official match exactly, unlike the annual Girls versus Boys one they do before Nationals start (they decided that this would be Nankatsu tradition ever since they started this last year. Why they liked this idea, she didn’t have a clue). This was all for fun, to see what both teams needed to work on before starting tournament season.

And there’s also the event that she could play against him. That’s always fun. Kicking his butt had always been an enjoyable event for her. But then again, he could always kick her ass this time. Like hell, she was going to let him.

“Last one!” she screamed as she kicked the ball passed the school gate, to where Ayame was already there waiting for the ball. When she ran passed the gate only then Ayame passed it back to her.

“Nice pass run,” Ayame said to her as they high fived. “I’m sure that we can beat those boys to the ground today.”

She beamed in confidence. “Hell yeah we are.”

They laughed together before she dribbled the ball again and the two of them proceeded to run to the boys’ field.

Once she saw everyone, she grinned and kicked ball, before sprinting and jumping onto his back.

“Whoa!” he exclaimed as he instinctively wrapped his hands behind her knees to support her. She wrapped her arms around him, grinning cheekily. She gave a wink to Izawa-kun and Misaki-kun as greeting to them.

He looked behind him and beamed when he saw her on his back. “I figured it would be you,” he chuckled.

“Well, who else would it be but me?” she countered. He was about to retort when Ayame arrived.

“Okay, love birds,” she said. “Let’s stop with the flirting and get going to field.”

“We are not love birds,” she complained, but she still didn’t get down from his back. “We’re not even dating.”

“Yet,” Misaki-kun sang as he started to walk away from them, Izawa sniggering away as he followed Misaki-kun.

The both of them blushed, but didn’t say anything. They just looked at each other and smiled. Well, both of them knew something that their friends didn’t and they would rather them not knowing.

They chuckled before proceeding to where everyone was.

Unfortunately for them, there was someone who saw their not so secret looks that they shared between them. Ayame had a pleased expression on her face, nodding to something she thought she must have figured out. But she didn’t dwell on it and ran after everyone else.

She was surprised to see who was there talking with the former Nankatsu SC members. She didn’t think Roberto would show up for a match like this.

“Ah!” Daichi exclaimed as he saw them. “Anee-chan! Onii-chan!”e hE H he ran towards them. She jumped off Tsubasa’s back and dashed towards the little boy, a gleeful smile on her face.

“Daichi-kun!” she cried out in joy. She welcomed him in her arms and carried him up, spinning themselves. Daichi laughed out in glee, clutching her neck tightly. She stopped her spinning and nuzzled his face. “Oh I missed my baby.”

“You guys just saw each other yesterday when we came by to buy some cookies,” Tsubasa remarked as he reached them.

“But that was too long ago!” She and Daichi answered heatedly. Goodness, this guy just had no idea between the bonds between kid and babysitter.

He looked shocked by their answer, and could only raise his hands in surrender.

She only cheekily stuck her tongue out at him.

“Sanae-chan?” she heard her name being called and she turned to see who it was, but she should have known who it was. Roberto still didn’t know she played soccer.

“Hey, Roberto!” she greeted him as he walked towards them. “I didn’t expect to see you here.”

“Well, I didn’t expect for you to be here either,” he retorted light heartedly. “As part of the girls’ team no less. Someone,” he gave a pointed look at Tsubasa, “forgot to mention this little bit of information to me.”

Tsubasa cried out a clueless “What?” but Roberto only sighed and shook her head.

She chuckled as she ignored Daichi making faces with his older brother over her shoulder. Ugh boys. “Surprise I guess?” she said sheepishly.

Roberto gave out a hearty laugh before the three of them went to the bench areas, where everyone was already gathered. They were all chatting as they help each other warm up and stretch. It always made her feel happy to see both boys and girls doing stuff together. Their team wasn’t like one of those other schools who scoff at the other gender’s team. They like the same thing, so why try and segregate each other.

Roberto patted her back and excused himself to go and try giving advices to the people on what they should do to stretch and warm up so they don’t feel as sore after the game. Daichi jumped down from her arms, following the Brazilian to hang out with the others.

Now that she thought about it, it’s actually a good thing that Roberto was here. They never had a coach, the girls didn’t anyway. Ever since junior high, they never had someone coaching them and the only reason they managed to survive was Nao-buchou’s perseverance to research and make the right training regime for them to follow. It also greatly helped that she wanted to be a soccer coach as well as a chemistry teacher. The boys though, did have coach back in junior high, but he wasn’t that great, so they basically just coached themselves. Once high school came, they had an advisor who was an avid soccer fan, but he wasn’t someone who knew how to coach, so it was just them again.

It’s really a miracle they managed to win Nationals like this.

And watching Roberto helping them and giving them advices was enough to make her heart swell in happiness, because finally, finally, they had someone to guide them in playing the sport they all loved.

She felt a hand on her shoulder and turned to look behind her. He was giving her a smile, and she couldn’t help but return it.

“It’s great isn’t it?” he remarked as they turned back to everyone as Roberto talked with Chieko-senpai. She could just see the how Chieko-senpai was taking it seriously and how enthusiastic she was receiving tips on even the simplest thing. “How everyone looked to be more excited to be doing this compared to before.”

She shrugged halfheartedly, the smile on her face never fading. “Well, we finally did have someone to coach us, even if it’s just for today. But, hey. It’s better than nothing. Plus, it’s the Roberto Hongo who’s coaching us. How awesome is that?”

He chuckled at her statement. “Well, Roberto didn’t have anything planned today so I told him about this practice match and may or may not have dropped some hints for him to help us.”

She gasped, “You didn’t?”

He gave her a barely nonchalant shrug, trying to stop his smile from widening.

“Oh, Tsubasa,” she cried as she tackled him with a huge hug. She heard him chuckle before she separated from him, beaming all the way. “That’s so sweet.”

“I thought it was time we had ourselves some proper coaching,” he said. “I mean, we did awesome all on our own, but sometimes it’s just not enough you know. So I asked Roberto if he was alright helping us for today. He was more than willing. He did say he wanted to see how everyone was doing and this is the perfect chance for it. Besides,” then he gave her a mischievous smirk, “he was pretty excited to see you in action on the field. Especially how you fare against me.”

She gave out a hearty laugh and patted his back, as well as joining her in laughing.

“Come on,” she called out to him. “Let’s go run some laps around the field.” She then gave him a wink. “We don’t wanna disappoint him, do we?”

He beamed again and the both of them started their laps, their smiles never fading.

* * *

 

Their 80 minutes of game time ended, and damn did the boys improve. With Koizawa-kun as their main striker, their defense had some trouble keeping up with him. Plus, since he was a natural midfielder and game maker, the boys’ formation could change from 4-3-3 into a 4-4-2 in a blink of an eye. It didn’t help that no matter how much Tsubasa and Koizawa-kun had some issues communicating off the field, they had one hell of a teamwork on the field. She didn’t know who to mark once Tsubasa or Koizawa-kun had the ball. Ayame was already busy with Misaki (who she was shouting profanities at in French and English, to the amusement of the guy), and everyone else was being marked by the other boys.

Praise god for Rika-chan. She was the best sweeper, hands down. Sorry Takisugi-kun. Also, their first years were heaven sent. They managed to make the tying goal in the 79th minute when she tackled the ball from Tsubasa’s feet and sent it to her, which she passed to Shiori and punted the ball lightly instead of kicking it so Wakabayashi-kun, who was about to grab it.

Could she get a hell yeah for creativity? Hell yeah.

Who said it was just the boys who improved? They didn’t use all that time doing nothing.

She wiped the water from the corner of her mouth. That match definitely made her parch and she could see that she wasn’t the only one. Miho was complaining about how her water bottle seemed to have been empty after she took just about four sips on it. Good thing their managers was there to hand them extra ones, with Daichi helping them out.

After that, the 22 of them that played as well as the other bench members started their talk about what they each noticed about the team as well as what they needed to improve on. It went well, seeing that they all are civilized people who could accept constructive criticism.

Right now, they were sat in front of Roberto, waiting as he read through his notes and go over what he thought on their match. She could feel the tension from everyone. It was the first time they were getting a feedback from a real coach in years. They’re all both anxious and excited about what he’s going to say. Did they do great or did they flunk? It’s not every day you’re being observed by _the_ Roberto Hongo.

Ayame sat behind her, braiding her hair. Her cousin might not look like it, but she was as nervous as everyone was. Apparently playing with her hair was one of her coping mechanisms, or rather her favorite coping mechanism. Since it grew past her shoulders now, she started experimenting with hair styles and thought her hair was the perfect guinea pig.

Tsubasa sat beside her, talking to Misaki-kun about something. It’s amazing how no one was pointing out how close they were. They couldn’t help it okay. It’s just instinct to sit with their shoulders touching because they’ve been doing this ever since they began spending their (some) nights on Hikarigaoka Park.

But she’s not complaining. This way they could be as close as they want to be without thinking about the nosy people they call friends.

“Ow!” she exclaimed as she felt her cousin tug on her hair harder than necessary. “Dear lord Ayame, would it hurt to stop pulling my hair harder than necessary?”

“I told you to stop moving!” Ayame retorted, still playing with her hair.

“I haven’t moved for 15 minutes,” she answered.

“Well, continue not to move then.”

She scoffed and rolled her eyes. Her cousin could be too much sometimes. “I should probably cut my hair soon. See what you’d do when that happens.”

“Ugh,” Ayame sighed. “Fine, I’m done anyway. You’re lucky I don’t have hair pins with me.”

“Finally,” she cried in relief. She didn’t exactly know what her cousin did to her hair, but it left half of her hair free. She was quite happy with her ponytail. This would just fly all over her face later.

“You know what, I’m going to Shiori,” her cousin said as she stood up. “At least she would appreciate my hard work.”

She could only roll her eyes again as Ayame stopped childishly away from her.

She was fiddling with a lock of her hair in her right hand, a small pout of her face as she looked down on it.

“Well, that’s a nice change of view,” she turned to look at him in surprise. She looked behind him to see that Misaki-kun was talking to Kisugi-kun this time. Huh, she must have been so into despairing her change of hairstyle she didn’t notice anyone around her. “Never really see you with your hair like that. You usually just have it up or not.” Then after a short silence he added, “It looks good on you. Your hair, I mean.”

Man, could this guy just stop making her heart beat fast even for just one day.

“Oh,” she said as she felt her face flush lightly. She unconsciously looked down and hug her knees. “Thank you,” she mumbled. “I was thinking of getting it cut…”

“Why?” he asked in confusion.

“Well,” she started, looking up to see Roberto still looking through his notes. “It gets in the way of playing.”

“Ayame and Shiori both have long hair and they managed,” he remarked as he took a uhGHlock of her hair in his hand. “Besides, I think long hair suits you.”

Again, her face heated up.

“Urghhh!” she exclaimed as she hid her face behind her hands. “Oh my god Tsubasa, you’ll be the death of me when you keep saying things like that.”

He only answered by laughing at her embarrassment and wrapping an arm around her.

She had to admit though, if he would always hold her close like this, she would be very much alright if he continued to say those things.

Roberto coughed and got their attentions. He praised them first for the match. It was apparently the first time he saw a match like that between grown boys and girls. After that he started to tell the things he noticed.

All of them listened intently, soaking in all the information and criticisms he had.

Roberto continued to talk, they stayed close with each other. And his arm never left her.

End Chapter


	33. Decisions

Chapter 33: Decisions

Roberto sat on the bed in the Oozora’s guest room. He couldn’t believe that he’s stay in Japan would be ending in three days. It still felt like yesterday that he saw Tsubasa not sticking out in a crowd of brown skinned Brazilians. Man was that a sight.

He was actually lucky the Oozora’s let them stay here. He didn’t exactly like Tokyo that much, and Nankatsu was just a small peaceful town. If he was going to go on a vacation, might as well just stay here.

But then again, he wasn’t exactly in Japan for a vacation. The higher ups didn’t even want him to spend two weeks here and wanted him to return right as he found who he was looking for. He wouldn’t have any of that. He hadn’t been to Japan in years, he fucking will spend that two weeks in Japan. Besides, it was amazing seeing how the very first group of kids he coached improved to great heights. They were the reason why he even started coaching, and look at him now, Sao Paolo’s head coach as well as the Brazilian Youth coach for the upcoming World Youth Cup.

Speaking of the Brazilian Youth, he did find who he was looking for. Luiz Santos was studying here in Japan, right in one of the prestigious soccer schools in Tokyo. He knew the boy when he played for the U-15 team in Argentina. He was good, almost as good as Santana. Well, they did form a good team in that tournament.

It was actually impressive to see him on the field in the flesh. His technique was impeccable, his speed was great, and he was definitely a natural. Of course he gave Santos an invitation to join the World to join the World Youth team of Brazil, to which he readily agreed, but he would join all the campaigns just after the National Tournament.

Well, that certainly changed a few things, but he could work with it. Though there must be a reason why he was willing to stay until the tournaments, or really why in the world was he in Japan for that matter.

The young man told him he was here to play against someone, someone who had an amazing soccer sense.

A king, Santos declared with an excited smile.

At first, Roberto thought that he knew exactly who he was talking about. It did sound a lot like Tsubasa, but he was surprised when it wasn’t the soccer prodigy at all. Santos looked at him in confusion and told him he never heard of his student before.

It was Koizawa Subaru.

That was the first time he heard of such a name, and he didn’t exactly watch the U-15 tournament that much to know this other Japanese soccer genius. Santos told him how they’ve known each other since childhood, when they fought in a small U-10 tournament in Spain. Apparently, they’ve been rivals from that point on and any kind of confrontation between them seemed to be something of a big deal for some groups of people.

That made Roberto curious for this boy, and as fate would have it, he was in Nankatsu. He was even in the same team with Tsubasa and the others. And the game they let him watch was the first time he saw the “king” play.

And he was good. He knew exactly what he was doing. He could see why Santos would like to keep an eye on him. Which also meant he had to rework all the strategies he’d made against Japan.

That is, if it was Koizawa’s team who will be the Japanese representatives.

He just heard this from Santos, but it seemed that the U-15 team that he played against had totally different players than the U-16 team. Not even anyone from the U-16 team he heard from the Nankatsu boys were even in that team.

It was a good thing he met Katagiri Munemasa when he was strolling in Tokyo, looking for a place to eat lunch. He was lucky they met in France, both of them seeing Tsubasa’s unparalleled potential in soccer and supporting his endeavors overseas.

But that wasn’t they talked about. Katagiri already why exactly he was in Japan, and he knew it’s not exactly for Tsubasa. The association already did release who were the coaches for the World Youth that was around the corner. The Japanese representative probably knew what came to Japan for.

So they left it at that and chatted about other things.

But knowing them it always came back to soccer, which then led to talking about who will be the Japanese representatives. Of course, Roberto guessed that it would be the same team that played for Japan last year in the Junior International Youth Team, since they did win the tournament.

_“The Japanese Association is actually still debating about the members,” the sunglasses-clad man answered, “I have given them who I picked, but they told me that someone else turned it a different list. He was the one who picked the Japanese team for the U-15 World Cup in Argentina. The association is considering to combine that team and mine. Not only because of Tsubasa’s and the other’s victory last summer, but the other team’s efforts reaching them the semifinals of the U-15 World Cup.”_

Of course, he questioned why the association wouldn’t just do it. As much as he liked the children he taught and watched in their endeavors in Yomiuri Land and France, but sometimes they had to make sacrifices for the betterment of their team.

_“The association, would love to,” Katagiri answered as he took a sip from his cup, “Except the other man refused to comply with their wishes and believes that his boys are far more superior to Tsubasa and the others.”_

Well, that didn’t seem to sound right, but when Katagiri mentioned some names in, he was surprised to hear the name Koizawa Subaru again. He was the one Santos considered a rival. If he was the one who led the U-15 team head to head against Brazil in the U-15 tournament, then this could change a lot.

So Roberto asked Katagiri what he was going to do about that claim.

_“I can recognize those boys potential,” Katagiri admitted, “But I disagree with his claims. Tsubasa and everyone else are better than them. I wouldn’t be able to say anything for Tsubasa, Misaki, and Wakabayashi, but I’ve watched the others ever since they were fighting each other in Yomiuri Land. I watched them grow and still continue to do so, and I believe that they really are the Golden Generation of Japanese Soccer.”_

With that, the Japanese Association member informed him of the showdown between the two groups right after the National Tournament. That will decide whose team will represent Japan in the World Youth Cup.

That will be another obstacle for him to convince Tsubasa to come to Brazil. He was sure that his student that would rather stay in Japan to be a representative. It was his dream to win the World Cup for Japan and the World Youth was a stepping stone for that dream.

But that’s not the biggest obstacle. Apparently, the soccer prodigy didn’t have just soccer in his head anymore.

He wasn’t saying that falling in love was a bad thing. It’s actually about time that Tsubasa finally realized that yes, there was indeed a world outside of his beloved sport. He’s not even surprised when he realized exactly who showed him things outside of soccer.

Sanae-chan would be good for him. He have seen them interact since they were children. She always did have a crush on him and Tsubasa’s the only one oblivious to it. Of course, as an adult who found it amusing, just shrugged it off and pushed it off the back of his mind when the two of them went to Brazil.

He just didn’t expect that she would still be into him when Tsubasa came back.

And he couldn’t blame Tsubasa for feeling the same way.

Sanae-chan was everything a boy would be attracted too. She was beautiful, kind, intelligent, and not to mention the two of them have the same passion for soccer. Roberto honestly couldn’t believe such a talent was just under his nose.

But that’s not all. With just the way they acted together, he already knew they were in too deep for each other. Their touches, their looks, their hushed conversations, their smiles. There’s no doubt that they were in love with each other.

Except they weren’t together. Roberto was sure that it’s all Tsubasa’s fault. Sanae-chan was too much of a sweetheart (and probably the one who initiated their whole relationship) and too in love with Tsubasa to turn him down. Tsubasa’s… just really slow when it came to matters of the heart (or anything else not relating to soccer). He’s probably in the process of figuring things out before doing anything.

But he still needed to know whether he was coming back to Brazil for the season or not. That way, he could find someone to take his place for now until everything ends.

He looked out of his door just in time to see Tsubasa coming out of his room, putting his phone in his pants’ pocket. There was a smile in his face, and Roberto could already figure out why exactly he was beaming.

Somehow, he already knew what Tsubasa decided.

* * *

 

He had a bad feeling about this talk with Roberto for some reason. Actually he might have figured out what his mentor would want to talk about. And it was making him nervous. He just didn’t know how Roberto will take his answer.

They sat together on the slope by the field he and his friends played on whenever they couldn’t use the school’s field. This was also the field where he first met Roberto, where it all began for the two of them.

They were just talking about random things, how he liked his stay in Japan, if he met the guy he was looking for, how his friends have changed over the years, and how they haven’t. It was nice reminiscing about their past, they could remember how they were all just huge goofballs over a sport played with a ball and feet.

It was nice to realize that they never changed from that.

“You know,” Roberto started, but hearing the way he said it made him stop what he was thinking about and feel himself start to get nervous. “There’s another reason why I came here.”

He found himself unconsciously gulping where this was going.

Roberto leaned backwards, his hands supporting him as he looked up to the orange sky. “I’m sure you already know what I’m talking about,” he said.

Of course, he’s been dreading this conversation for a long time now.

“I’m leaving in three days,” he continued, “and not once did we even talk about this. I think it’s time we have it, don’t we?”

He didn’t answer, he couldn’t and he only turned away from his mentor, playing with a piece of grass near his feet.

“I was surprised when you never brought it up,” Roberto added. “I would have guessed that you would have taken this chance right away, but I was confused when you never mentioned it when you emailed me back after I told you I would be coming to Japan.”

He still didn’t anything, still fiddling with the piece of grass, and Roberto took that as a sign to continue.

“I thought that you didn’t say anything because you wanted to talk it out with your parents first, but it seemed like that they didn’t know anything about it judging by how your mother never talked about it even once.”

He wanted to say that he did plan to tell it to his parents sometime, but that would be lying.

“You didn’t seem to have told your friends about it too,” he mused. And he couldn’t help the guilt in his stomach from forming. “They would have joked how you’re going to be more of a handful this time.

His mentor chuckled, “I guess just from those, I should have figured out why you never told them anything. And I did.”

He suddenly stopped playing with the grass and slowly turned to look back at his mentor. So he already knew?

“But,” he added. “I still want to hear it from you.” Roberto looked away from the sky and stared at him deeply in the eye. “Are you returning to Brazil?”

He sucked in a deep breath.

He wanted to. He really did. If he returned, he could make his dream to play in Brazil come true.

But if he did leave, then he was going to be leaving everyone again. He would be leaving his family again. He would be leaving his brother who he was three years late to meeting. He would be leaving his mother that was always left behind to constantly take care of her children as his father worked to provide for them.

He would be leaving his friends behind. He would be missing all those memories that would be made between them. He would be missing the tournaments that they all poured their hearts and soul into. He would be missing all the times they were just being the idiots that they were.

And most of all, he would be leaving her.

He wouldn’t be able to see her everyday anymore, wouldn’t be able to hear her laughter, wouldn’t be able to see her smile at him, wouldn’t be able to feel her close to him. He wouldn’t be able to see her continue to grow, wouldn’t be able to see her lead her team to win Nationals, wouldn’t be able to play against her. He wouldn’t be able to talk to her as often, wouldn’t be able to spend nights with just her in the park.

And he realized, he didn’t want to be separated from her, not when he finally, finally could say that he was truly, madly, deeply in love with her.

That cemented this decision he’s been agonizing over.

“I,” he started, licking his lips, “I’m not returning to Brazil. At least not until I graduate.”

There was a tense silence between the two of them as they stared at each other, the wind blowing harshly from behind them.

Then Roberto looked away, chuckling.

He blinked in shock. What?

“I was right,” he said with a smile. “I figured that’s what you’re going to say.”

“You’re-“he spluttered, “you’re not mad?”

“Well, I’m a little annoyed,” Roberto admitted. “Since I have to find a different guy to take your position I originally I planned to place you. You are my main guy to take care of Santana.”

He’s sorry?

“But, I’m sure I can find someone,” he continued. “I can always have Radunga mark him.”

He met the man before and he was a really great player. “He’ll be able to keep up with Santana.”

“Yeah,” he agreed. “But this also changes everything for you.”

“How?” he asked his mentor.

“Well, the higher ups weren’t really quite taken with the idea of moving you up to the main team, saying that you were still too young and lack the experience to play on the league. They only considered you when they heard the news that Flamengo signed a contract with Santana,” he informed him. “They told me that this would be the only chance for you to get into the main team easily. But since you don’t want to be back yet, they would have probably nulled the other contract they had with you about you playing when you turn 18. So now you have to start from scratch and prove to them more that you deserve to be on the team.”

He could live with that. Besides, it wouldn’t feel right if it was just given to him.

“And, I was hoping we would be able to play on the same side before all hell break loose.”

“Huh?” he asked with knitted eyebrows. “What do you mean, Roberto?”

“You’ve heard of news about this before,” he said nonchalantly. “The World Youth Cup is just around the corner.”

He paused.

“And I’m the Brazilian team’s coach.”

He looked at his mentor in shock again. That- that was certainly news.

“And I’m already telling you we won’t be an easy team to beat,” he declared. “I’m going to make sure of that.”

He already knew that and suddenly he felt excitement steer in his stomach. Roberto would be coaching the Brazilian team, and they were surely going to be a strong team. He wanted to challenge this team. He needed to be in the Japanese team.

“So, you make sure you be a Japanese representative,” Roberto ordered him. “That way we could see whose team is better.”

He nodded enthusiastically.

“The next news I should hear from you should be you getting in the team,” he then added with a pat on his back. “And you finally manning up and asking Sanae-chan out.”

He almost choked on his saliva from hearing that. “Wha-“he stuttered as he tried to hide his blush.

“Don’t even hide it Tsubasa,” he remarked, “I didn’t let you stay for Japan just because you wanted to graduate. I know you just wanted to be with her longer (and maybe with everyone else). It’s not like you guys are trying to hide how into each other you are. We’re not blind.”

“W-well,” he said as he rubbed the back of his neck, still blushing. “Sanae and I a-are getting there. Well, she’s already there and I’m almost there. We- I- she-“

“Don’t hurt yourself.”

He replied by glaring at the Brazilian, but he sighed in the end. “I’m working on it,” he admitted. “I just didn’t want to say anything yet because both of us are busy with Nationals coming up.”

“Hurry up then, don’t leave the poor girl hanging,” Roberto advised. “She’s been into you since you guys were young. I remember when I was your age-“

He rolled his eyes and tried to stop him from continuing. He tend to do that while trying to lecture him back when they were in Brazil. Man, he was going to miss those. Actually, he now that he was thinking about it, he was also going to miss a lot in Brazil, but for some reason that didn’t bother him at all.

Because he knew, that whatever things would be happening in Brazil, he wouldn’t turn back from his decision for staying.

End Chapter


	34. Another's Thoughts

Chapter 34: Another’s Thoughts

Subaru wasn’t sure how to feel about all of… this exactly. On one hand, he didn’t exactly have anything against Oozora. He was a nice guy, and a talented soccer player. He used to not know anything about him. He guessed he was busy being swamped by soccer scouts to actually hear about other notable players in Japan. It also didn’t help that Oozora went to Brazil in order to be a better soccer player. So yeah, he didn’t know jack shit about Oozora until recently. Actually, he hadn’t heard anything about the tournament in Yomiuri Land at all. According to some of the rumors he heard, it was supposed to be a legend that it was the first big tournament that bred Japan’s Golden Generation. At least that’s what the other scout believed, according to Mizuki-san.

Maybe that was when he felt a little resentment for Oozora.

Growing up, he loved soccer. He practically lived it. He along with Kaoru, joined the local boys’ soccer club in their city. He worked hard to make the both of them better, because they wanted their dream of winning the World Cup possible. And he was happy that Mizuki-san recognized his talent and hard work.

Because of that, he was in all sorts of camps and international tournaments representing Japan. Every time he was sent overseas, he could feel a sense of pride for representing Japan. He along with Niwaki and the others showed that they were Japan’s hope, the generation that would lead them to winning the World Cup.

He felt himself getting closer to his dream when he was picked for the U-15 team. He did everything in his power to let Japan win the tournament. He even thought that they might finally have a chance when they tied against Brazil in the group stage. Even their defeat against Spain in the semifinals was a small victory for them. It meant that after a long time, Japan will finally have a chance for the title, all because of them.

But then, Oozora and the others appeared.

So while his team was busy off trying to win international friendly games for Japan, there was another group of players emerging and taking Japanese soccer by storm, almost as if they were taking their places. They didn’t think much about this. They were just rising stars, unlike them who were already being bred as the future of Japanese soccer.

It was just unfortunate that nobody ever told them that someone was already planning for this other group to be the Golden Generation. A year before his team was scouted by Mizuki-san. They were the group who took the Japanese soccer by storm, when they were fighting in Yomiuri Land.

And Oozora Tsubasa was the one who led this group for being the most talented player, maybe even the whole of Japan. But then he left, and the group from Yomiuri Land was ignored again. There were only a select few that managed to garner attention from Mizuki-san, most notably Hyuuga Kojiro. After Oozora, Hyuuga was the one praised for his goal scoring.

But he was never on the team, and the only time Subaru ever had any contact with him was when they fought on the field. And that was the first time he lost against someone in Japan. Hyuuga could keep up with him easily, and that defeat prompted him to train harder. If just one person from this “Golden Generation could play with him head to head, then what about the others? Most especially, Oozora Tsubasa who some consider as the best.

He didn’t know whether to count it as a blessing or a curse when he watched the High School Nationals this year and managed to see their games this time. He couldn’t join the tournament this time, being busy playing friendly campaigns. He came home just in time to see their watches on TV, and he was sure that anyone from his team was flabbergasted by those matches.

It was as if he was watching wasn’t a high school match, but a professional match.

They could easily keep up with them, and maybe even the rest of the world. Just like his team.

It didn’t help that the International Football Association made a new tournament for boys 16 and under. What hurt more was that they weren’t picked at all, he wasn’t picked.

He didn’t even have to ask Mizuki-san why any of them weren’t picked at all, because he told them that the Association didn’t even tell him about this at all. Meaning to say, Mizuki-san was pissed beyond belief. But even if he wasn’t informed of the tournament, Mizuk-san told them to stay put. He was sure that these group wouldn’t even be able to last that long in the group stage.

He wasn’t exactly sure about that.

But they didn’t mind it. Mizuki-san knew what he was talking about. This group would be decimated right away.

So he thought of other things, like their move to Nankatsu. He didn’t know whether fate was playing with him, or was it just coincidence, but of all cities, why did his father’s company transfer him there of all places? Where the current high school champions were, where Oozora Tsubasa was.

He guessed it was a good thing that he wasn’t there when they arrived. He might have challenged Oozora impulsively without knowing his whole capabilities and that’s not a good thing.

But, there was at least a gray lining to this cloud.

He met Nakazawa Sanae, and she took his breath away.

Subaru wasn’t the type to be attracted to girls easily. He didn’t have that much time to think about them with how busy he was. And he would admit that he was a little turned off with how some of the girls acted around him.

But, Sanae, she- she was different. Maybe it’s because she didn’t know anything about him at first. But when Kaoru told her about his exploits as a soccer star, she only smiled and complimented him. She didn’t start clinging onto him, she didn’t start flirting with him, she didn’t even made any move on him. She took it all in stride and treated him like any other person.

That was when he realized that he wanted to know her more. He wanted to know everything about her. And for the first time in his life, he found himself attracted to someone.

It was fortunate that he was put into her class by the start of the fall term, and even sitting beside her. He did get to know her more. He learned all kinds of things about her, and he was glad for it.

It was just unlucky that by knowing more about her, he also had to know that she was great friends with Oozora Tsubasa. And what’s worse, she seemed to see him as more than a friend.

At first he was disheartened, and maybe a little bitter towards Oozora. It seemed like everything was being taken away from him by Oozora. He already had the Japanese soccer fans at his feet because his victory in France, and now the first girl he found himself attracted to was instead in love with Oozora. It seemed unfair.

But when he noticed that Oozora didn’t seem to reciprocate her affections at all, there was a feeling of hope bubbling in him. Maybe, just maybe he could have a chance with Sanae. That if he could show that he would be better than Oozora in taking of her, then maybe she would give him a chance.

So, he tried it. He gave subtle hints. Little smiles here and there. Helping her out as much as he could. Brightening up when he talked to her. The smallest things.

At first he thought it worked, seeing that she would usually give him smiles whenever they met eyes, and she would always pleasantly greet him, but nothing more than that.

But something seemed to have happen between her and Oozora. He noticed things. He noticed how they seemed to be closer, noticed their hushed conversations between just the two of them, noticed the looks they shared.

It was the smallest things, but for them it spoke volumes. And sometimes he wished it was him that she could give those tender smiles to.

It seemed like Oozora won again.

But that didn’t mean he was giving up. Not with Sanae, or soccer.

The World Youth was just around the corner, and they were picking the representatives just after Nationals this year. But it’s not just about who would represent Japan, it was also between the two scouts’ choices of players. Mizuki-san’s team who reached the Semifinals in the U-15 tournament, who tied against Brazil’s team, or the other scout’s team that won the small tournament in France.

He knew that the Association would be pitting the two groups against each other. Mizuki-san informed them right as he was told. And he couldn’t help but feel excited over this match

Finally, he was going up against Oozora. He could prove that they weren’t as great as everyone made to them to be. He could prove that there were more talented players in Japan than those people. That this “Golden Generation” wasn’t just them.

He worked hard to get where he was, and he wouldn’t be giving it away so easily to people that only had international experiences not too long ago.

He’s not saying that they didn’t work hard enough or that their win in France was just luck. He knew that they gave it everything they got to win that tournament. He just didn’t see how they could survive against harder international matches when he and his team have been playing more of those kinds of games since they were young. They deserved to be the representatives.

So he would give it all he got, give everything he had to prove that they were better. That he was not giving up his position as Japan’s No. 10 to anyone, even if it was a great of a player such as Oozora.

Oozora was a nice guy, and he could admit that he was a great soccer player, but Subaru knew he could be better. He wasn’t giving anything up to him. Whether they be soccer, or about Sanae.

Besides, if this match ended just the way he wanted it to be, he was going to confess to her.

And if he didn’t he would finally stop.

End Chapter


	35. Resolved

Chapter 35: Resolved

Nationals for girls this year was earlier than the boys’ tournament, being starting a week earlier than theirs. As usual, it was the same teams who duked it out on the field, and basically it was a repeat of the showdown they had in their second year of junior high, and it ended quite the same too. They won for the second time. And Nao-buchou was glowing by the end of it. That was the first time she saw their captain smile that big since the time she got the captaincy last year. She’s even not that pessimistic anymore. Even Chieko-senpai and Rinko-senpai was celebrating in their own way. There were tracks of tears on Rinko-senpai’s face and Chieko-senpai was laughing and crying at the same time

But she could see why they would feel that way. It was just like with the third years last year. It was their last year in high school and they won Nationals. This meant something even more for Nao-buchou and the others, they won it twice. Even if the last match ended with a PK shootout for them against KitaGaku. The three of them wouldn’t stop thanking all of them, their underclassmen for letting them win Nationals.

Of course, they them that it was their hard work that let won them the tournament.

They could only laugh as they continued to celebrate.

Well, they’re not exactly celebrating yet. Their boys’ team still need to defend the title from Toho. No surprise there. Hyuuga-kun seemed to be more amped up to get gain the title just for Toho this time.

Unfortunately for him, Nankatsu wasn’t giving it to them easily. Not when their team was stronger than ever.

Sucks to be them.

Anyway, since they got their tournament early, they figured that they would show up at the boys’ training field and give them one last help in preparing for their last match tomorrow. And what’s surprising about this was that it was Nao-buchou who was the most eager to train them. She definitely believed that this has something to do about them embarrassing Nankatsu if they didn’t win at all. She’s actually pretty scared for the boys because Nao-buchou could be quite ruthless when it comes to, um… punishment. Her “Anee-chan” episode wouldn’t be able to compare to it.

So here they were, watching as Nao-buchou was shouting for them to pick up their skirts and move it, you pansies. Ayame, being who she was, was also joining in with Nao-buchou’s fun. She was just really there to insult the boys. Even their first years was joining in, to the boys’ chagrin. They’re probably thinking how demoralizing this is to their egos, having first years’ call them lame.

Poor them.

She heard Nao-buchou telling them to take a break, actually feeling a little bit relieved for them. They’ve been doing drills and exercises since an hour ago and she knew how tough those could be. If those weren’t needed to prevent injuries she would skip them all together.

She got up from where she sat on the floor and proceeded to walk towards the boys, carrying a case full of water bottles.

“Great job surviving the dreaded drills everyone,” she greeted the group of panting boys on the ground, sitting tiredly. “Be thankful that she’s not exactly going to train you hard today since you have the match tomorrow.”

“This isn’t hard?” Ishizaki-kun whined. “I feel like dying, again. This seemed worse than yesterday!”

“Agreed,” Kisugi-kun said before squeezing the life out of his water bottles. Man, they sure were thirsty.

“Really?” Tsubasa remarked as he wiped a trail of water from his lips. “I think today was easier.”

His friends could only look at him blankly.

“It’s you Tsubasa,” Izawa-kun said. “You’re opinion doesn’t count.”

“Hey!” he cried out, offended. The boys could only laugh at him while giving each other high fives.

“If you have time to laugh your asses off then I’m guessing you’re done with your break,” Nao-buchou hollered behind them. “Well, in that case, move it wimps. You have a match to win.”

Nao-buchou’s directions were met by groans and whines, but they followed anyway. They knew that this wasn’t for nothing, that this was all for them. So they continued to practice so that they could be ready for tomorrow’s match.

“Don’t injure yourselves,” she called out to them. She was about to sit down, deciding to watch the boys a little closer. Besides, Nao-buchou will probably call her over soon to referee for their practice match. Or if her teammates show up, then maybe they would be the one the boys will be playing against. Where were day anyway? They should be helping the two of them instead of gallivanting along Shibuya’s street.

“Sanae-chan?”

She looked up, surprised to hear someone calling for her. It was even more surprising to see Subaru-kun interrupting her thoughts. Shouldn’t he be on the field along with the other boys?

“Oh, hey there Subaru-kun,” she greeted him as she stood. “Can I help you with anything? Do you need any taping? A water bottle? Some Band-Aids?”

She started to rummage through the random bags her boys owned. She’s sure they wouldn’t mind her looking through them, she just had to find-

“No, I’m fine,” he told her frantically. “I’m fine. I just- I- Can I talk to you?”

She stopped looking through the bags. She didn’t feel right about the way he said it.

Oh no, oh no, oh no. Please not now. In fact, please never say what she knew he was going to say.

“Oh,” she mumbled, “Oh. Sure. I-I guess.”

“Thanks,” she heard him mutter.

Suddenly, they found themselves lost for words. Well, he was. She really didn’t have anything to say to him. They were just standing there, trying to not meet each other’s eyes. This was really becoming awkward.

She opened her mouth, about to ask what he wanted but he beat her to it.

“I like you,” he declared.

Damn it.

She found her throat dry, and her voice didn’t want to come out. She knew this was coming, and she was prepared for it, a little. It’s just that, it was still nerve wracking to hear someone you treated as a friend confess to you. What’s even worse was that knowing this friend didn’t have a chance because she was honestly and fully in love with someone else.

“Oh,” she said. “I-I’m sorry Subaru-kun. I- I-“

“I know,” he replied. “I know. You’re in love with Oozora.”

That caught her off guard.

“I’ve seen the way you guys act,” he continued as he took steps towards her. “I’ve seen you guys move around each other. I’ve seen the way you guys look at each other. I know. Someone has to be blind to not see how much you guys are into each other.”

“Oh,” she mumbled dumbly. For reason, this made her more uncomfortable that she already was.

“But,” he added as he stopped a few feet away from her. “I- I wanted to say this to you for a long time now, because I just wanted you give me a chance, to give me a chance.”

She didn’t know if she could because her heart only belonged to one person and she didn’t think it wanted to be anyone else’s.

“I know that, that might be impossible,” he said. “But Oozora didn’t seem to be thinking about anything but soccer right now. Though I don’t know what happened between the two of you that made you seem closer, but please,” the way he pleaded made her look at him suddenly. And her chest felt tight and painful when she saw his face.

“Please give me a chance.”

She could only look down, scared that what she might say will already break his heart than it already was.

She heard him sigh.

“After Nationals,” he started. “The association will be picking the members for the World Youth coming up next year. But it’s not about the players. It’s the scouts. So the association will really be picking between my scout’s team, and Oozora’s scout. There will be a match between our teams.

“I know that you’ll be rooting for Oozora,” he pointed out calmly, as if he was sure that she was going to do that. “But, if we win against him, I- I hope you’d be okay to just go on a date me. Just one date.”

Again, she didn’t say anything, only stared down.

“T-thanks for listening to me,” Subaru-kun said. There was small silence between them and the next thing she heard were ruffled footsteps and felt a chase kiss on her head.

She looked up in surprise, but the he was already gone, running back towards the field. She watched him join in and put a hand on her chest.

Her heart was beating fast.

If she looked towards the other side of the field, she would have seen Tsubasa frowning from what he just saw.

* * *

She was going all out in Nankatsu High’s colors of light blue and white, wearing a shirt with the school’s name on it that Ayame made. Apparently it was some kind of thing in American schools to be wearing the school’s colors whenever a prominent sports team of the school were having an important match to support their athletes. So Ayame made it a thing in their school and convinced everyone to wear light blue and white for today. And it worked. Their side of the stadium was littered with the colors of their school they look like a sea of Styrofoam peppered with light blue sprinkles. Yeah, it was that terrible.

But damn were they supportive. She could see it in the boys’ eyes. The way they were laughing and waving at everyone. She could see that they appreciated every single person who wore their colors and went to support them.

The Toho players and supporters could only stare at them in disbelief and confusion. Hyuuga-kun even looked towards them in the stands mouthing “What the hell?” to which she answered by sticking her tongue out at him. He could only roll his eyes while she laughed at his reaction.

Then her eyes met Tsubasa, and she noticed there was something bothering him amidst this rowdy people. She knew that by now, fighting against Toho and Hyuuga-kun, he would be the most excited amongst everyone. But right at this moment, there was something in his eyes that told her that he was thinking deeply about something.

“What’s wrong?” she mouthed to him. Hopefully it wasn’t anything big, because he really needed to focus on this match.

She saw him open his mouth, as if he was about to mouth something back to her, but he closed it and shook his head. Instead he looked at her intensely, as if saying something to her with just his eyes. And she understood it. She couldn’t exactly describe it, but with just that one stare, she knew what he wanted to say.

So she gave him an encouraging smile and a salute. She felt her heart flutter once he returned her smile, laughing as well as he saluted her back.

She watched him as he turned towards the field and ran towards the other boys, joining them for warm-ups. Whatever was bothering him was gone for now. He knew his priorities and whatever he was thinking, she was sure that he would tell her after this.

So she was going to trust him to know what to do the best, and if by the end of the match he was still bothered by something, then she’ll listen to him and support him.

Even if someone else wanted her support. But no matter how she tried, how much she thought about it, how much she tried to convince herself to give Subaru-kun a chance, she couldn’t because Tsubasa has it till the day she dies.

She took the charm she gave him out of her shirt, taking it off her neck.

“Tsubasa!” she screamed. He turned to her direction, along with the other boys surrounding him. She held out the necklace by the chain. She gave it a few seconds, before suddenly bringing it to her lips and giving it a kiss.

She could only laugh as he flushed brightly while everyone of the boys started teasing him. But when their eyes met again, she knew that he would be alright.

Yes, Subaru-kun was an amazing guy, but her heart could only belong to one person.

End Chapter


	36. Rivals

Chapter 36: Rivals

It was a tough match like usual when it comes to Toho and Nankatsu, but mostly between Tsubasa and Hyuuga-kun. There wasn’t any surprise there. Everyone was at the edge of their seats just watching the two of them duke it out on the field. Honestly, she thought it was amusing. On the field, they’re just monsters trying to kill each other, while off the field, they’re so chill. Ugh, these boys should really stop taking soccer seriously.

But it wasn’t just Tsubasa who gave Hyuuga-kun a hard time. Subaru-kun held his own against the fierce tiger, and with two people marking him, it was hard scoring for him. Plus, Wakabayashi-kun was guarding Nankatsu’s goal.

Hyuuga-kun was prepared for Wakabayashi-kun though. His Tiger Shot was a lot stronger than what it was last time they played on the field. She might not be down there, but she could see how strong it was. Yeah, the hole in the net couldn’t exactly say how strong it became, right?

But in the end, this exciting match ended with a score of 3-2 with Nankatsu winning.

Hell yeah.

Right after the whistle blew, she took off from her seat and rushed to the field, all the other girls following after her.

She dashed through the field, zipping through the grass and everyone else who went out of their seats to congratulate the new champions, but this time they weren’t sharing it with anyone.

There was only person in her sights and all the adrenaline was forcing her to rush to him.

“Tsubasa!” she screamed once she was near them. She barely even noticed all the other boys around him or how he was just shaking Hyuuga-kun’s hand.

She just really wanted to be close to him.

She couldn’t help but flung herself to him, and he welcomed her with open arms. She held onto him as he twirled them both, her feet off the ground. She didn’t notice anything, or anyone for that matter. She didn’t notice the bewildered stares coming from their friends that slowly turned into knowing smiles. She didn’t notice the teasing smirks on some of their faces. She didn’t even notice the only frown in the area.

She was only aware of the two of them, and the beat of her heart telling her how much she was so so in love with him.

“You did it!” she exclaimed once she faced him. They weren’t aware that hers arms were still around his neck, or his arms were still warped around her waist. “You won! For the second time in a row!”

He laughed heartily, sharing her excitement. “We both did it!” he said. “You guys won too! We’re both back to back champions!”

She could only squeal in happiness before hugging him again, and honestly she thought that she would never get tired of feeling the rumble of his chest whenever he laughed.

Soon enough, their friends joined them. Some of them were laughing, and some of them were crying, and some were both because yes, they did it. They won Nationals twice in a row now.

The stadium was so cheering for them loudly they could barely hear the announcer over the speakers, congratulating Nankatsu for winning the tournament.

_“Now, here is Mr. Hayato Ono, President of the Japan Football Association, presenting the representatives for the World Youth Tournament.”_

That made them stop celebrating. She directed her attention to where the president was, bowing humbly as everyone clapped for him. She separated herself from Tsubasa, opting to stand beside him instead.

She felt her breath hitch. She knew that the president wouldn’t actually announce who the representatives. Subaru-kun made sure that she knew that. She just didn’t want to see Tsubasa’s reaction when he hears this.

 _“Thank you everyone,”_ Ono-san said over the microphone. _“First of all, I would like to congratulate Nankatsu for winning this year’s Nationals again. It was a splendid match again this time against Toho. All of you did a wonderful job.”_

The crowd cheered again, this time praising the players who sheepishly accepted the cheers. She couldn’t help but bump her shoulder against him, a teasing smile on her face. He only looked at her with that smile that never failed to let her heart race.

 _“Moving on,”_ he coughed. Once the crowd quieted down, he started to speak again. _“As much as I would like to tell everyone who our representatives for the much anticipated World Youth Tournament. We do have great athletes today. But I’m sad to say we have not decided on who our representatives will be.”_

The crowd erupted in hush whispers, asking themselves about what could be happening with the Association right now. They should have had the representatives picked by now. Why was it that they didn’t have it ready?

She looked all around, and most of her boys had the same expression of confusion on their faces. The only people who didn’t seemed exactly puzzled over this was Subaru-kun and Niwaki-kun. That was understandable. Subaru-kun probably told Niwaki-kun about this news.

 _“As I said Japan has a plethora of great soccer players today, and it is really hard to choose from them,”_ the president continued. _“But we did have it down to two sets of players._

_“I hope you all remember the group chosen by Mizuki Sakamichi two years ago. They did lead our country to reach the semifinals in Argentina two years ago for the U-15 World Tournament.”_

This time the crowd voiced their agreements, maybe even reminiscing. She was sure that Subaru-kun and his teammates were quietly feeling proud of themselves. Well, they were judging from the discreet smiles Subaru-kun and Niwaki-kun shared.

 _“And how could we forget the All Japan Junior Youth Representatives chosen by Katagiri Munemasa that won the Junior Youth Tournament in France?”_ Ono-san reminded them. She could hear everyone cheering, apparently that event was still fresh in their minds. Maybe it helped that some of the representatives were down on the field, giving each other high fives.

Ono-san coughed, silencing the stadium. _“At first we thought of combining these two great teams, wanting to see if we have them playing together would bring glory to Japan, but further consideration have us believing that it might be the greatest idea._

_“So instead we have decided that we will only choosing one team.”_

There stadium was filled with chatter and whispers again, clearly blown away by this information.

She looked around, already her boys were stealing glances towards Subaru-kun and Niwaki-kun. Niwaki-kun didn’t mind it and continued to look towards President Ono, but Subaru-kun’s attention was directed at someone else, and she realized that it was the very same person standing right next to her.

Tsubasa and Subaru-kun were staring at each other intensely as if they both just declared war at each other. It- it actually scared her a bit. Tsubasa’s eyes looked hard, as if it was steel and it was the first time she saw him like this.

 _“So, in three weeks,”_ Ono-san began, _“We are sponsoring a match between these young athletes in the Ecopa Stadium in Shizuoka. Whoever wins the game will be the one representing our country for the World Youth.”_

When they heard those words, their stares were harder, fiercer.

She wasn’t sure this was just about being representatives anymore.

* * *

To say that it was awkward right now was an understatement. It was downright uncomfortable.

Just like last year, both the girls’ and boys’ teams were off celebrating their victories, and it was in the same restaurant too. At this time they were supposed to be up and about acting like drunks without drinking any sort of alcoholic beverage. That’s what happened last year.

Now, they were just sitting there silently staring at each other. Well, the guys anyway. The girls were trying to fill in the silence by chatting about the most random thing and trying to grill their meat as cheerfully as possible. It wasn’t working though and only made the atmosphere more awkward than it already is.

The boys though, were just staring at each other. Usually they would be doing their antics like trying to win against Ayame over reasoning but failing miserably, or taking quips over Ishizaki becoming balder every second that pass. Nope, they’re silent today.

They all knew the reason why they were like this. And it concerns some of the news they received from yesterday.

Who wouldn’t be uncomfortable when you would be fighting against your teammates in three weeks for a chance to represent Japan? Not to mention the captains of the two teams were in the same school team and might have an unspoken rivalry over the central midfield position.

Or you know, a rivalry over the same girl they gave their hearts too.

Yeah. Awkward.

“Oh for fucks sake!” Ayame swore out loud as she stood abruptly from her seat, surprising everyone. Yes even the parents and other family members who also felt the tension among the boys. “I can’t stand it anymore.”

“What can’t you stand anymore, Aya-chan?” Shiori asked her.

“Everything!” she exclaimed in distress pulling on her hair as she got out of her seat.

She stomped towards the table shared by the boys team and slammed her hand on the table. “Talk,” she ordered. “I don’t care that you guys are going to be against each other in three weeks. I don’t care that you hate each other-”

“For the record, I don’t really like them. I just tolerated them,” Niwaki quipped. The other boys then turned to glare at him, to which he only rolled his eyes at and ignored them. He did get an elbow to his ribs from Subaru.

Ayame turned to him with a blank face. “Does it look like I care?”

“…No,”

“Good. Glad we understand that.”

Then she went back to addressing everyone. “The point is,” she started, “You guys just won Nationals. As members of the same team. You guys won it _together_. All of you guys made it happen. If this team was missing at least one of you guys, then it would be fucking terrible and you will be slain by Hyuuga and his Toho goons. So be fucking grateful for each other and celebrate goddamnit.”

She was met by silence as she breathe hard, trying to grab some oxygen because she forgot to breathe while saying that speech.

“I think that’s actually the nicest thing you’ve ever told us,” Wakabayashi remarked, breaking the silence.

“Agreed,” Kisugi nodded. “And I actually feel moved by it. Usually, Anego would be the one doing these kind of talks, but seeing that she’s missing right now to who knows where-”

“Bathroom.”

“Right. But anyway, it’s kind of weird hearing Ayame-chan do it instead. Not to mention kinda insulting.”

“Fuck both of you,” Ayame hissed. To which the boys only smirked at.

“But Ayame-chan is kinda right,” Misaki interrupted. “I mean, if it wasn’t for Koizawa-kun and Niwaki-kun being part of the team, our team wouldn’t be as great as it was, or is for that matter. Besides, they don’t exactly become… our… enemies…? Until tomorrow when all of us have to go to our separate training camps.”

“Thank you!” Ayame turned to him. “At least someone understands me.”

“I guess,” Ishizaki agreed as he crossed his arms. “But that doesn’t mean I’ll be friends with them.”

“Ugh, grow up Ishizaki,” Taki scoffed, “You’re just jealous they have more talent than you.”

“Hey!”

Taki promptly ignored them and turned to the Niwaki and Subaru, who were just silently watching them interact.

“So truce?” he asked, offering his hand up for high five. “At least until today. I mean you guys are still our teammates so why not.”

Niwaki and Subaru looked at each other before shrugging.

“Ah fuck it,” Niwaki said as he slapped Taki’s hand with his. “It’s not like it’s going to kill us to actually like you for a day.”

“I’m fine with them. You’re just the one who… hates… them.”

“You know what, Koizawa? No one cares what you say!”

Ayame then sighed in relief.

“Ah, praise God you guys finally figured everything out. Now everything can go back to normal,” she muttered to herself. “Good, now do your thing. Get drunk out of sodas. Insult each other. As long as you just talk. I don’t care.”

“So does that mean we can make fun of your recent obsession with high heeled boots?”

“Oh hell no! You did not just go there Misaki. You’re going down buddy!”

And with that the usual ruckus and chaos brought by Nankatsu finally appeared. Sorry for anything broken in advance.

He sighed as he took sip from his glass. Well, there they go again. At least they were having fun. They were already out of their seats doing lord knows what. Even Niwaki got roped into their antics.

The only problem was, he was left with Koizawa, who was coincidentally seared across him.

Maybe a few days ago, it wouldn’t be hard being left with him. Just a little bit awkward, maybe try some little chats to fill in the silence. But with that stare-off yesterday, well let’s just say there seemed to be a wall of ice between them now.

“So…” he started. “How’s it going?”

“Great. The food’s nice.”

Cue silence.

“Are they always like this?” Koizawa asked as he looked at their teammates watching something on Izawa-kun’s phone and laughing at it. They were obnoxious about it too.

“Yeah,” he answered sheepishly. “They’re uh, they’re very loud when they’re off of the field. Well, more like they become idiots when they’re off the field.”

Oh look at least he smiled. That’s a plus.

Cue silence again.

He was about to drink from his glass again, but what he heard made him stop

“I’m not giving up,” Koizawa said out of the blue.

What?

“I’m not giving up,” he repeated. “Not on being the representatives.”

Oh that’s what he meant.

“Not on Sanae-chan either.”

Well, that’s a different story.

He heard Koizawa take a deep breath. “I know I can’t have what you have, but I’m willing to fight for the match and for her. I’m willing to give my everything just to let her know that. Because I like her, Oozora. And I know you do too, but I’m not going to give up on her easily. Even if I know you’re the one she likes.”

This time it was his turn to take a deep breath. He could see Subaru was serious about this. He couldn’t exactly blame him. There were great things on the line for the both of them.

But, he wasn’t willing to give them easily too.

“Thanks for being honest with me,” he smiled at Koizawa who seemed to be taken aback by it. “And I kinda figured you like her. You weren’t exactly discreet with it

“I don’t blame you for liking her,” he added, “I can understand.” They then turned towards where she was, trying to appease Ayame from rampaging over the boys while carrying Daichi in her arms. “She’s everything any guy wished for.”

Then she turned towards them, a smile on her face. They didn’t know who was she was smiling at, but they returned it back. You just have to smile back because her smile could light up the whole world.

She could light up his world.

“But,” he said as he stood up. Daichi was calling for him and who was he to break his brother’s wishes. “I’m sorry. I’m not letting her go.”

He excused himself from Koizawa, leaning the other guy dumbfounded as he went towards his brother and her. When he reached them, she greeted him with that smile reserved for him that he absolutely adored because she gave it just for him.

And it always made his heart soar

Yes, Koizawa liked her, but him? He’s absolutely, irrevocably in love with her.

End Chapter


	37. War

Chapter 37: War

She was actually nervous for this match. It’s not that she thinks they would lose. She had faith that they could hold themselves on their own. Besides, she visited them in their training camp and from what she saw they have a great chance of beating the other team.

Well, she didn’t exactly know. She never did went to Subaru-kun’s camp in the other side of Shizuoka. Frankly, she didn’t… really… care about them that much… Yeah, she knew they were formidable opponents, but she believed that her boys and their team could beat them.

But still, she couldn’t help but feel a little anxious about this game. She didn’t even know why she was feeling this way. It also didn’t help that Tsubasa seemed to be taking this more seriously more than necessary. Sure he should be taking this seriously. Come on, it’s a huge deal to represent the country for the World Youth, of course this should be important to him.

But she had this feeling that it wasn’t just that was on the line for him. As if this game is worth more than that, that this was worth everything to him

And it scared her. It scared her that whatever he was working hard for would be for nothing.

She didn’t want that, because then he would be sad and the last thing she wanted for him was to be unhappy.

She hoped it never came to that.

She was standing outside the locker rooms, leaning against the wall while waiting for the team to come out, for him to come out. She needed to talk to him. Well, not exactly per say. But she thought that maybe she just needed to be close to him, to touch him, then everything would be alright.

She didn’t want him to lose because she couldn’t bear the thought of her being with someone else that she knew never had a chance for her heart in the first place.

She was playing with her necklace when the door opened. She stood up straight but it didn’t seem that they noticed her as they continued to walk straight down the hallway. Okay, maybe the boys noticed her, considering they were snickering when they met eyes. She only glared at them.

The only people that noticed her was Misaki-kun and Tsubasa himself.

Misaki-kun looked at the two of them before giving a knowing smile.

“We’ll see you out there,” Misaki-kun patted his shoulder before following the others out of the hallway.

They watched him leave, until his silhouette disappeared. When it wasn’t in their range of sight anymore, only then did she turn around to face him.

“Hi,” he greeted her with a comforting smile. But for some reason, she couldn’t return it back.

“Hey,” she replied weakly. She knew she should have forced to sound more cheerful like she usually is, because he knew too well that he could easily see what wrong’s with her.

Just like she could with him.

And sure enough, there was a frown on his face.

“What’s wrong?” he asked as he walked closer to her.

She didn’t meet his eyes, and instead looked down.

“Sanae?” she heard him say in concern. She didn’t look at him again, she didn’t know how to.

“Sanae?” he called out to her again, this time she knew he was closer than before. She could feel his warmth and she so badly wanted to be warped in.

Ah, fuck it.

She took a deep breath and slowly looked up to him. “Promise me you’d win,” she said, and she didn’t even notice the desperation in her voice.

She saw him blink at her in surprise and she almost wanted to punch herself for blurting that out loud.

She heard him chuckle and she gave him a glare, but that didn’t last long.

He took her in his arms and hugged her close to him.

“Silly, of course I’ll win,” he told her, still not letting her go. Hearing him say it with confidence made her relax a little, but her anxiety was still there. She could only wrap her arms around him.

“I think I can guess what you’re worried about, seeing that you can read me like a book,” he chuckled. “I know you noticed why I seemed to be more invested in this match than necessary.”

“It’s not how you usually are when you’re focused on a game,” she mumbled against her chest.

“No, it’s not,” he agreed with a small laugh. “It’s not.”

“So why exactly?” she looked up to him.

“Let’s just say that there’s more in the line than just the World Youth,” he answered vaguely.

She fucking knew it.

“Then,” she looked up to him, “ignore that. The World Youth should be your priority. Whatever that could be could wait. This is your dream, Tsubasa! Don’t let it get away.”

“I can’t,” he answered her, and she was surprised by how his voice changed into steel, as if he was offended by what she said. “I can’t just ignore what’s on the line.”

“Why not?” she challenged.

“Because you’re on the line!”

Oh. Oh. Oh my god.

She heard him sigh and saw him ran a hand through his hair.

“Koizawa told me that he likes you,” he told her as he looked away from her. “And he said that he was willing to do whatever it takes to make you like him back, and beat me here too so that he can prove to you that he’s worth someone to give a chance to, as well as say that he’s better than me in soccer.”

Well, this explains a lot.

She put her hand on his cheek and gently had him face her. “You know that’s not true. You’re in so many ways better than him.” Then she tried to give him an encouraging smile. “Besides, my heart can never belong to someone else but you.”

He looked surprised again, but that didn’t last long before it melted into a smile that she never saw before.

It made her heart skip a beat.

“I know,” he said as he grabbed onto her hand that was on his face before turning to face it and giving it a chase kiss.

She felt her heart race. Oh my god, he just didn’t do that.

“But that doesn’t mean I won’t fight for you,” he added as took her hand off his face, but didn’t let go of it. “I will.” Then he squeezed her hand tighter. “Besides, I’m never giving you up.”

She couldn’t say anything, nor was she able too because she found herself in his embrace again.

“So I’ll win,” he said as she felt him kiss her head. “I’ll win, for the both of us.”

She didn’t know what to say, but for some reason her tears just won’t stop flowing as she clung to him while her heart rejoiced inside her.

When he arrived by the entrance, everyone was already there, chatting up as they waited for the event to start. He saw everyone talking with the kids they were supposed to be going out with. He could even see Daichi talking with the other boys. Of course, the Nankatsu guys were playing with him, while the other ones were quite amused by his little brother. No doubt because of their similarities. And maybe also because he was wearing Nankatsu’s Junior League uniform that made him look a little like him when he was young.

“Hey, little man,” he greeted as he ruffled his little brother’s hair. “I see you’re quite the star today with my teammates.”

“Nii-chan!” he exclaimed as he raised his arms, the unspoken request of wanting to be carried in them. And who was he disappoint?

He took him in his arms and carried him up.

“Man, you guys look too much alike,” Soda remarked as tickled his little brother.

“And it’s not just that,” Izawa said. “Both are soccer geniuses too. According to Tsubasa’s mom, Daichi was just like Tsubasa when he was young. You can’t take away a soccer ball from them.”

He chuckled as Daichi stuck his tongue out at Izawa and buried his face on his shoulder. “What can I do?” he asked rhetorically. “Soccer is life,” Daichi declared with him.

The both of them looked at each other before he smirked and offered his hand to his brother for a high five.

“Yup, you guys are brothers all right,” Hyuuga remarked as he ruffled Daichi’s hair.

“Hi Kojiro-nii-chan!” Daichi greeted him.

“What’s up?” he asked as he took the child from his older brother. “Whoa look at you. You’ve been gotten heavier since the last time I carried you.”

“Nii-chan said it means that I’m growing right,” Daichi answered.

“You know him too, Hyuuga?” Jito questioned the forward.

“Yup,” Hyuuga confirmed as he returned the younger Oozora to the older one. “The squirt got lost in Tokyo one time and I helped him find his way back to his mom. Totally surprised me though when I found out he was Tsubasa’s brother. But then he found a soccer ball and everything made sense.”

“Why do guys like picking on our love for soccer?” Tsubasa complained as he put down Daichi to the ground, who then left to join with the other children in the vicinity. Apparently he got tired of his nii-chan’s friends making fun of him and his nii-chan.

“It’s your fault for being soccer obsessed,” Soda retaliated teasingly, to which Tsubasa countered by sticking his tongue out at him. Very mature, right? “Don’t you think of anything else besides soccer?”

They heard someone scoff and they turned to look at Wakabayashi, who was smirking knowingly.

“I can assure you he does,” he remarked as he crossed his arms. “Especially because he’s been thinking a lot about someone for quite some time now.”

He gave a discreet glare to their goalkeeper as everyone denied Wakabayashi’s statements. Come on, Tsubasa, think about a girl? Impossible.

Yeah, he could, but they didn’t need to know that.

“Oh of course he does,” Misaki joined in the conversation. Oh hell no. Fuck no. Great, he’d humiliate him even more. “In fact, he just talked to this someone a few minutes ago.” The other midfielder then looked at him with that teasing glint in his eyes. “How did your talk with Anego go anyway?”

He was this close to flip his friend off, but for the sake of his brother and the children around them, he won’t. At least he’ll try to control himself.

“Anego?” Jito sounded out. “She’s that one girl that hangs out with you guys right?”

“Yup,” Misaki confirmed, “She was waiting outside the locker room for Tsubasa so I left them alone to have some privacy if you what I mean.”

Soon, everyone pretty much whistled and catcalled, teasing him for “getting some action” and “finally you made a move.” You can pretty much guess how embarrassed he was. Why was he friends with all these people?

“I hate you so much right now,” he told Misaki who could only wink back as he shared a high five with Wakabayashi.

“What are friends for?”

He was about to retort something along the lines of not humiliating your friends, but was interrupted by the announcer telling everyone that they would be going outside the field in a few moments. So they all scrambled to their places, him going up front since he was the captain.

When he arrived, Daichi was already there, berating him about him almost being late. He apologized sheepishly, before looking up.

That was the first time he noticed Koizawa.

They met eyes, but they didn’t say anything. Koizawa gave him a nod, before returning to face the front and wait for them to be called out to the field. He didn’t even manage to think about it since Daichi was yanking his arm excitedly as they were called out to start the event.

The two teams ran walked out of the field, holding their child escorts’ hands. The cheers inside the stadium was deafening and he didn’t exactly know who the crowd was cheering for. But he didn’t really care, because the person who he wanted to support him the most will never leave his side.

Nor will he ever leave hers.

He spotted her quickly in the crowd, clutching something under her shirt. He knew what she was holding onto, because he was feeling for her charm too.

He didn’t know whether they met eyes or not, but when she smiled, as if it was directly at him, he beamed.

The referees called both captains up as they ushered the children out of the field. Daichi said his goodbyes to him and wished him a good luck. He even said to him that if he loss, he wouldn’t be his nii-chan anymore. So he swore that he wouldn’t lose.

Not when he’s doing this for another reason. An important reason.

When he arrived in the center circle, Koizawa was already there and the referee started explaining the rules of the match. But he knew that neither of them was listening. They’ve played many games now, they knew the rules word for word.

Instead, they stared at each other. The unspoken declaration of war coming from their eyes. But there was another message in them, a message that only they both know.

_I won’t give up on her_

_I’m not giving her to you_

They both know that they’ll do everything they could to win against each other.

End Chapter


	38. Winner

Chapter 38: Winner

Everywhere in his body burned, but he ignored it. There was only 10 minutes left and the score was still in a stalemate of 1-1. For all the 90 minutes of the game, Koizawa’s team managed to score the first goal in the 56th minute when Niwaki outwitted Wakabayashi and flicked the ball to the other side from where Wakabayashi dived to.

They were all surprised by how such a simple trick could beat them. It was almost even underhanded, but it was perfectly acceptable.

But they couldn’t help but be disappointed at themselves for not thinking about Niwaki’s creative actions. They were teammates for heaven’s sake! They should have prepared for Niwaki’s unexpected plays.

What’s more frustrating was it was Koizawa who assisted him.

He had to admit, he felt a little ticked when he saw the other team celebrating, because even if they didn’t say anything to them, the look they gave to him and his team said it to all to them.

They were gloating, and they weren’t afraid to show it.

So, as his team’s motto, they took back what they lost.

On the 64th minute, Hyuuga and he rallied through the other team’s defenses, and finding the perfect chance to make a cross, he passed the ball to the fierce tiger that Hyuuga used for a magnificent Tiger shot that made the equalizer.

This time it was their turn to gloat, but they didn’t say anything. Instead, he took the ball from goal and dashed to the center circle for the kick off. He only glanced at Koizawa, who was frowning deeply, before ignoring it to play more.

The war continued on.

From then on, the score hadn’t change.

He could see every one of them getting frustrated. He could understand. He’s frustrated with what’s going on right now. It was a miracle no one in their team was given a card yet.

The referee blew his whistle to call out a foul made by one of the defenders in the other team. Matsuyama was given a free kick and this could actually be an advantage for them. It was a good position for him to make his Eagle Shot, or he could bluff it and make a cross to Nitta instead.

The referee had the wall stand a few feet away from where Matsuyama was preparing to shoot. Matsuyama looked at him and their eyes met, before they nodded at each other.

He was going to be the getting the ball.

The whistle blew, and immediately Matsuyama dashed towards the ball. The other team’s wall jumped didn’t move, preparing for his low shot, but as their plan, Matsuyama hit it over their heads towards him.

He received it with no problems and kicked it straight to the goal.

It would have scored, if it weren’t for Koizawa managing to block it right before it could pass the goal line.

Damn it. Specifically, damn him.

But he knew that it was all part of the strategy. He was tasked of marking Koizawa and Koizawa was told to mark him. He already knew beforehand that’s how it was going to be, but it was still irritating when everything he tried to do in order to score was blocked.

He knew Koizawa was doing everything he could to prevent him from winning because then it would mean that it’s the end, that he lost.

And it was the same for him. He couldn’t afford to lose, not now, not ever.

He wasn’t giving him the chance of taking her away from him.

They all waited as Misaki prepared for a corner kick. As expected, Koizawa was marking him again, trying to block him from getting the ball. The guy knew that if he got the ball, then it would mean that it’s over got them, for him.

It’s not like Misaki was kicking it towards him anyway. Koizawa needed to remember that he wasn’t the only one playing for their team.

Misaki hit the ball, and instead of kicking it near the goal where most of their offense were, directed it all the way to back, where Misugi overlapped and started to dash through the field.

He heard everyone from the other team gasp in shock and he couldn’t help but smirk. There was a reason why their whole team have a great deal of trust towards Misugi. And making a decision like this was one of them.

Taking advantage of Koizawa’s surprise, he quickly ran back towards Misugi. He knew time was running out, and if he manage to score win this goal, then everything would finally be over. There was bare a minute left, and this ball would decide everything.

And Koizawa knew that. That’s why he was running hard to catch up to him.

But, it’s all over now.

“Misugi-kun!” he shouted to his teammate.

Immediately, Misugi heard him and kicked it towards him. Koizawa slid and tried to tackle his legs, thinking that he was going to trap it.

That wasn’t his plan at all. It was risky, but he knew he had to do it. It was the only way to win this match.

Dodging Koizawa’s tackle, he jumped with all his power in the air, and all according to his plan, the ball was in the perfect position. He twisted his body in an overhead position and with everything he got, shot the ball straight to the goal.

The ball zoomed past everyone, flying across everyone’s faces in the blur. The other team’s players tried to block it, but they were too slow. And when it reached their goalie, even he was too late to save it.

He fell to the ground just as the ball hit the net. They all stared at it spinning against it before finally dropping to the ground and whistle blew just as the ball rolled on the grass.

All of them didn’t move for a few seconds, until all of the sudden the crowd cheered, along with Ishizaki’s shout of joy.

They won. They finally fucking won.

He was still in his state of disbelief when he felt someone tackling him from behind, and all of the sudden he was surrounded by his teammates cheering and celebrating and praising him for his shoot.

When Hyuuga finally punched him in the shoulder, only then did he finally realize what was going on.

“We won,” he mumbled.

“We’ve repeating that for the past minute now,” Hyuuga teasingly told him. “Where have you been?”

“In a state of disbelief,” he snarked back with a smile. “I just did a trick that didn’t look possible. You tell me how you would feel when you made it work.”

Hyuuga only retorted by laughing and putting him in a headlock as he rubbed his knuckles on his scalp.

“Besides, if it wasn’t for Misugi-kun, I wouldn’t have scored that decisive goal,” he added, looking at their sweeper. Misugi rubbed the back of his head bashfully as everyone praised him as well. It was true though. If he didn’t overlap at that time, then they wouldn’t have won.

They continued their celebration amongst themselves, barely noticing the confetti raining on them and the announcer’s voice congratulating them over the speakers. To be perfectly honest, they didn’t really care about any of those at the moment.

It was all over, they finally won. All their training and hard work finally paid off. They were going to be representing Japan. His dream wasn’t going to be snatched away from him.

She wasn’t going to be stolen away from him.

He looked up towards the stands, trying to look for her, but he was interrupted by someone he never expected.

“Oozora,” he turned to see Koizawa approaching him. He felt everyone’s eyes on them, but they both didn’t mind it. They already knew what this conversation is going to be about.

“Koizawa,” he said, facing him.

Koizawa sighed and smiled dejectedly. “I guess this is it, huh?”

He didn’t answer, because he knew that if he did, he would only rub salt over the poor guy.

“Damn it,” Koizawa mumbled. “I just can’t seem to beat you can I? Whenever I think I’m getting closer to beating you, you always, always manage to become better.”

There was a small sarcastic mumble of “Tell me about it,” coming from Hyuuga, but he then yelped in pain when Matsuyama elbowed him in the ribs.

Koizawa only chuckled as he heard the forward’s statement. That’s right, every single of Oozora’s teammates should know. They’ve played against him before becoming teammates with him. They would understand what he was feeling.

He turned back towards Oozora, who was chuckling at his teammates’ antics.

They watched as both teams started to talk to each other, finally letting the wall between them crumble now that everything was over.

“I gave all I’ve got you know,” he added softly. Oozora looked at him with a little bit of pity, and he was about to say something but he interrupted him. “But I’m grateful you gave everything you have too.”

He offered his hand to him. “Congratulations,” he said. “You deserve this. You all do.”

Oozora stared at his hands for a couple of seconds, before producing a grin.

“Thanks,” he answered as they shook hands. “You guys deserved it as much as we do. You guys did your best after all.”

Koizawa shrugged. “But I guess our best wasn’t good enough.”

Before Oozora could speak another thing that was supposed to lift him up, he spoke.

“Do your best in the Tournament, you hear,” he told him as he punched his arm lightly. “Don’t make me regret losing to you.”

Oozora laughed as he punched his back. “I won’t. I promise.”

He smiled again, happy that they understood each other.

“And,” he began before releasing a deep breath. “Take care of her, alright.”

That took the smile off his face.

Man, he didn’t know it was this hard. It was hard letting go of someone you honestly thought was the only for you.

But, it was also his fault. His fault of liking someone that he knew wouldn’t feel the same he did for her.

“Of course I will,” Oozora declared.

Koizawa gave another smile. “Good,” he answered. “But keep your guard up. You never know, others might take her away from you too.”

He chuckled. “Then I’ll do what I did with you,” he paused. “I’ll fight for her.”

Koizawa stared at him in surprise, before he started sniggering. “Man, you guys deserve each other.”

Oozora could only blush. “T-thanks I guess,” he stuttered. “A lot of people had been telling me that. I uh I was just too dense to realize it.”

“Well, at least you know now, and I can confirm that you guys feel the same way,” he said. “I’m sure you guys will be together before you guys know it

“So,” Koizawa started again. “Don’t ever let her go.”

Oozora smiled at him, “I don’t plan to.”

So with one last pat on the shoulder, Koizawa turned towards the exit, where his teammates were waiting for him and finally walked towards them, his head high.

Tsubasa watched them before they disappeared completely. Once they were gone, he looked up towards the stands, and spotted her quickly.

He could see the trails of her tears on her face, but she wasn’t sad. There was a huge grin on her face and he couldn’t help but grin back.

She was holding something through her shirt and his heart couldn’t help but flutter inside him.

She didn’t to tell him anything, because he already knew what she was feeling because he felt the same way.

He knew that you could ever love someone greatly as he does for her.

End Chapter


	39. Heartbeat

Chapter 39: Heartbeat

He thought that when the match ended, they would have a bit of respite until they have to play again October for the first round of the qualifies, but that wasn’t the case at all.

Immediately the day after, they had to go to Tokyo for a conference with the Association, telling them their game plan for the following months. They would have to be back in Tsumaigo to start preparing for the first in about two weeks, a week after summer vacation started. They would be there until the end of summer vacation and come back again a week before the first round that would be happening in October.

At least they have the week off before they have to get back to training.

But even they were packed for the first three days of the week.

The day after the conference with the Association. They had a press conference. It was almost all fine and dandy. It wasn’t there first time doing it after all. But whoever decided to make it a public conference deserved to think about his life choices. Never in his life did he see such a huge gathering of rabid fangirls right in front of him. Like, was that how popular soccer guys are for females? They didn’t even do anything but kick a ball around a grassy field. And apparently, since he was dubbed as captain, his popularity boosted up more. Some of them even tried to yank his shirt out, it was scarring.

Most of the time, he had to keep close to Misug-kun (who knew how to handle them efficiently and without getting himself mobbed) just to keep himself safe and uninjured.

Why did they even need the press conference for? He’s pretty sure that they have enough publicity.

But that wasn’t even the last time he had with those fans. Before this whole fiasco with Koizawa and his team, he along with Hyuuga-kun were going to be in an interview for a talk show because they were going to be the new captains for the two favorite teams for high school soccer. He didn’t even know how the media knew. They weren’t supposed to know until what, the fall?

Well, he couldn’t do anything about it and just came to the interview to make everyone happy. It went okay. But the questions they were asking the both of them were kind of uncomfortable. Why would they need to know what brand he likes the best? Yeah, he did lean more into Adidas, but what reason do they need this for?

When all of it was over, Hyuuga-kun just told him to humor them, even if more fangirls will try to mob him next time, but wearing more Adidas merchandise.

God save him.

Never had he been more grateful to come back to Nankatsu when he arrived home. And when he came to his room, he just plopped into his bed to snooze the day away. He did kind of feel bad for breaking his promise to Daichi to play with him, but he was just too tired he couldn’t even be woken up.

And all of his plans of talking with her also went out of the window because he was too tired. He was planning on making everything straight too. He thought it was about time. This has been dragged to long. And, he already knew what he feels for her. It’s about time he made things straight.

Hopefully, when they all meet up tonight for the summer festival they have time to talk.

Because and he wasn’t even going to deny it, but he couldn’t wait to have her in his arms.

Maybe that’s why he couldn’t stop feeling jittery as them boys stood on the edge of the street where all the stands were lined up. They were waiting for the girls, who was supposed to be here a couple of minutes ago. His friends were all complaining on what’s taking them too long, because if they didn’t come any sooner, then they’re going to run out of the good stuff. Personally, he didn’t mind. He was sure that the girls were still making last minute touches. It’s not every day you get to wear a yukata.

Okay, maybe he did mind. He was excited to see how she would look in a yukata.

And she didn’t disappoint.

“Hey guys!”

They all turned around to see the four of them quickly walking to them fast. All of them were wearing yukata’s, but there was only one person who he couldn’t take his eyes off.

Compared to the three other girls, she was just leisurely walking behind them, taking her time to get to them. Her white yukata that was patterned with light blue flower petals fit her perfectly, as her hair was halfway up while the rest of it fell down past her shoulders like waterfalls. There was a light layer of make up on her face that

She took his breath away.

“Hey,” he greeted her as she arrived before them.

“Hi,” she greeted back, a smile on her face. “Long time no see. How was the life of a sports celebrity?”

He sighed exasperatedly as they all started walking down the street. Their friends walking before them, leaving them trailing behind all of them. He was fine with that. This way they could have some privacy.

“Ugh,” he said. “Don’t even get me started. I’m more tired doing that one interview than playing a match.”

She chuckled beside him, and he felt his heart flutter at that sound. Man, he just didn’t see her for a couple of days and he missed her that bad.

“Hey, at least it’s just your first one,” she told him. “It’s not as bad what Hyuuga-kun had to endure. He’s not just a sport celebrity, but he’s actually becoming quite the teen star.”

“Really?” he asked bewildered. So that’s why he was so calm throughout the whole thing.

She nodded in confirmation. “Apparently, he has the looks for it.” Then she giggled mischievously. “And who knows, with how everything is going for you, maybe you’ll be one too.”

“No thanks,” he answered quickly as he shoved his hands on his pockets. “I’ll pass. I don’t really want to be surrounded by that many girls.”

She only chuckled again as he smiled from hearing it.

“Besides, the only girl I need is right beside me,” he added cheekily.

He couldn’t help but smirk when she suddenly turned red and look away from him.

“You are so mean!” she whined as she refuse to look back to him, flustered. “God, Tsubasa. I told you not say things like that. I don’t think my heart can take any more of those kinds of remarks.”

He chuckled at her embarrassment. For some reason, he always liked seeing her flustered. Maybe it’s because he’s the only one who could.

“Why?” he started cheekily. “It’s the truth.”

This time, she whipped her head to look at him, the red on her cheeks turning darker than before as she looked him in disbelief.

“You- I- argh!” she exclaimed as hide her face behind her hands.

“Woah what is going on there?” Ayame asked as she turned around to where they were. “I heard my cousin sound like a dying whale. Everything alright? Don’t tell me you did something wrong to her, Tsubasa-kun? I left her in your care because I trust you.”

“If you hurt her Tsubasa,” Ishizaki teased. “Then prepare for a beating. We don’t forgive anyone that hurt Anego.”

He laughed and raised his hand to gesture that everything’s fine. “We’re good,” he answered. “Just teasing Sanae.”

Ayame raised her eyebrows in amusement. “Ahhh,” she remarked. “Is that so? Huh, I guess that’s pretty harmless. Continue on, I suppose. Also you need to tell me these things so I have more things that can push her buttons.”

“Sure thing,” he answered, “I’ll text it to you.”

“I’ll be waiting for it,” Ayame said to him before finally returning to face the front and telling Misaki-kun to stop poking her side because she’s ticklish there.

He chuckled one last time before turning to face her again, and this time she wasn’t hiding behind her hands, but she was glaring at him though.

“Really,” she said unhappily while crossing her arms. “Not only are you trying to make my heart explode, but you’re also going to exchange notes with my cousin on how to embarrass me. Like she doesn’t do it enough.”

He gave out a hearty laugh and threw a hand around her shoulders. “Come on,” he said. “You know we do it because we love you.”

She sighed and rolled her eyes before uncrossing her arms. “Fine,” she said, “I’ll forgive you this time.” Then she turned to look up to him and gave his cheek a chaste kiss. “But only because you’re cute.”

He was caught off guard by her remark, so he could only watch dumbfounded as she ran away from his arm, giggling along the way.

She turned to look at him mischievously. “Don’t think you’re the only who can play this game, Tsubasa,” she winked. “Now, come on. Don’t just stand there. We have a festival to enjoy.”

He stared at her dumbly for a few more seconds, before shaking his head and moving to walk beside her.

He knew that tonight would be amazing, just because she was beside him.

“Dude, the fireworks are starting in 30 minutes,” Taki informed everyone as he glanced at his phone. “We need to go the riverbank soon to get a good spot.”

“We only have 30 minutes?!” Ayame exclaimed, trying to hold onto the huge teddy bear she one from one of the gaming stands. “Holy shit really? Oh my god, we need to get there right now before we lose all the good spots.”

“Does the spots get filled in that quickly?” Misaki asked skeptically.

“It does,” Shiori answered. “A lot of people watch the fireworks every year, so even when you decide to come to the riverbank ten minutes before it starts, chances are there’s barely any spots for you.”

“Huh,” Misaki remarked. “Those must be awesome fireworks then.”

“They fucking are,” Ayame exclaimed. “So that’s why we should stop dilly dallying here and go the river bank.” She then tried to walk really fast, but that didn’t work out greatly when there was a stuffed animal that was half her height was blocking her view.

They all couldn’t help sniggering before Misaki took pity on her and offered to hold onto her bear for her seeing that she was not going anywhere when she couldn’t even see where she was going. She tried to say that she didn’t need his help, but even then she gave it to him while sulking.

Then they all started to follow the two who started talking discreetly in French. He was about to follow suit, but he was stopped when he felt a hand grab his wrist.

“Don’t tell anyone,” she smiled as she put a finger before her lips, “but I know a better to place to watch the fireworks. Come on.”

She didn’t even let him answer because she just started pulling him through the crowd. He looked back towards their friends who didn’t even notice them leave them. Good, then this could be their chance to finally be alone.

This could be his chance to tell her what he feels.

He shouldn’t have been surprised when they arrived at the place where she said the fireworks looked better. They always seemed to find themselves in Hikarigaoka Park after all.

“I discovered that the watching the fireworks here was better when I just didn’t feel like being with everyone during this festival,” she informed him as they took a seat on the grass. “I guess it was because the very person I wanted to be with was halfway across the world, playing his heart out for his beloved sport.” She admitted sheepishly. “Though, I still can’t get over the fact that he’s finally beside me, going to be watching the same fireworks I wanted him to see those years ago.”

He smiled at her bashful confession, his chest felt like it was flying from such a sweet thing coming from her. He just wished that this happened sooner, because the very thought of her being unhappy makes his chest hurt.

“Hey, I’m here now,” he assured her, “and I’m pretty sure I’m real.”

She chuckled at his statement and his gaze at her softened. It’s been hours since she had her hair styled and her makeup was starting to fade, but damn did she still look gorgeous.

And every time that passed, every second they spent together only made him love her more.

“Sanae,” he started. She turned to him, expecting for him to say something, and he was about to but a loud boom echoed in there years as the fireworks started their show in the sky.

“Oh!” she exclaimed excitedly as she turned to watch it. “You gotta see this first Tsubasa. Don’t miss out on your first firework experience here in Nankatsu.”

He tried to, he really did, but he just couldn’t take his eyes off her. He was mesmerized by her. The way the lights from the fireworks illuminated her face, the way her eyes twinkled as she watched, the way her smile shone brighter than any of those lights in the sky, everything just took his breath away.

He was such a fool for making her wait. Not when he could have had someone like her in his arms.

Gulping, his arm moved on its own and landed softly on her face. It seemed to have caught her off guard because of the confused look she gave him.

“Tsubasa?” he barely heard her speak. He didn’t say anything, because he didn’t know what exactly was going on, he was already leaning closer to her. Maybe it was because he was just following his instincts, or maybe he wasn’t. But he knew that his heart was just full of love for her and this was the only way he thought of her that could tell everything he felt for her.

He always did believe that actions speak louder than words.

So as the fireworks exploded to the beat of his heart, he took her lips with his.

End chapter


	40. Soaring

Chapter 40: Soaring

She felt her eyes widen as she felt his lips on hers. The fireworks continued to light up the sky, matching the drumming of her heart.

She couldn’t believe it. He was kissing her He was actually kissing her. She dreamed of this moment countless of times now. She imagined all possibilities of how this could happen, and now that it was finally happening, she knew that it surpassed all those things she could think of.

It was no denying that her heart felt like soaring at that very moment.

So she shakily grabbed a hold of his shirt and returned the kiss.

They separated from each other just as the last firework faded in the sky. She didn’t even notice it, but there was a trail of tears running now her cheek and she started to unconsciously sniff her nose.

“You missed a spot,” he told her as he wiped a stray tear on her cheek.

She managed to produce a laugh, but even then you could still hear that she was crying. “Thanks,” she croaked as she rubbed her nose. “I uh, I’m still a little shocked, I guess. I didn’t expect you suddenly do that. Now, I’m all disoriented and trying to convince myself this isn’t dream, because if it is, I don’t think I want to wake up.”

“Hey,” he said as he cupped her face with both of his hands, “I told you, didn’t I? I’m here, I’m real, and I’m never leaving. You’re not dreaming, and even if you are, you would rather wake up because I’m right here beside you.”

She felt herself take a deep breath and her heart was so overwhelmed with all her feelings for him, for this man who put her through so much but she could never stopped loving.

So, just like he did, she leaned up to him and took his lips.

She poured everything into that one action. Her emotions, her feelings, her heart, her soul. She wanted him to feel what she was feeling for him right at that very moment, for him how happy she was, how grateful, how she was so much in love with him.

She didn’t even notice when he took her in his arms and pulled her closer to him, or when she wrapped her arms around him, holding him close.

And just from that one kiss, she knew that he felt the same way.

When they separated, they unconsciously had their foreheads meet. Both of them were out of breath, but they were smiling.

“I guess that’s one way for us to know that we feel the same way,” he joked.

She laughed lightly hit him with her hand. “Shut up,” she told him. “You’re ruining the mood. I want it to last longer.”

He gave out a chuckle and she giggled along with him. She just felt so light, so happy that she didn’t want this moment to end.

He pulled her to him and kissed her forehead.

“I love you,” she heard him mumble against her forehead. She was caught off guard by his declaration that she quickly looked up to him, her eyes wide.

His eyes were calm, serene, happy, in contrast to her shocked ones. And for the second time that night, she felt like crying.

“I am in love with you,” he continued. “I am absolutely, irrevocably in love with you. I’m so in love with you that every time I look at you I feel like my heart is going to burst, that every time you’re with me, the world becomes brighter, that every time you smile, I just can’t help but fall for you.”

Oh god, if he didn’t stop saying all of these things, then it’ll be her heart that will burst because she’s so in love with him that she couldn’t help falling for her even more.

“Ugh, Tsubasa,” she complained as she started wiping her eyes again. “You’re making me cry again. You’re the one making my heart burst.”

He chuckled again, and only embraced her closer. “Then, I’ll be there to wipe your tears again.”

She produced another croaked laugh. “Who knew that you could be such a romantic,” she remarked. “We’re not even dating for even a day and you’re already reaching and passing boyfriend expectations.”

“It comes natural,” he replied. “But maybe because you’re my girlfriend. It’s hard stopping myself from showing and telling you how much I love you.”

She put a little bit of distance between them, and looked at him in mocked suspicion. “Oh no,” she started, “Now you’re just doing this so I can give you another kiss.”

He gave her a nonchalant shrug. “Maybe,” he answered vaguely, giving her a wink.

Oh you little-

She smacked him in arm, as he yelp in pain. “You’re pushing it buddy,” she told him as he nursed the part she just hit. “You gotta earn your kisses. Remember we just started.”

“What?” he whined, “But I’m your boyfriend. I thought I can get them for free now.”

She shook her head as if she was reprimanding a child. “Nope,” she answered, “You need to do something first so I know that you deserve it.”

“But I just poured my heart out to you,” he said, “I think that deserves a kiss.”

She rolled her eyes in mock exasperation. “Oh alright,” she conceded, “You big baby. You also made me cry twice tonight. That should have made nulled it.”

“You were crying because you’re happy though,” he reasoned. “At least I hope you were. Were you?”

She chuckled as she leaned closer to him. “Yes, you big dork, I was happy,” she replied teasingly. “I am happy.”

He started to lean towards her. “Good,” he said, “Because I am too.”

Their lips were about to meet, but of all of the sudden her phone rang.

“Oh come on!” she exclaimed in frustration. The both of them separated from each other as she reached for her forgotten string bag on the grass.

He could only sigh in defeat once she got her phone out of her bag.

“What Ayame?” she asked in exasperated tone as she sat beside him. Apparently, calling wasn’t enough for her cousin and instead video called her.

 _“Woah, someone sounds grumpy,”_ Ayame remarked. _“No need to sound hostile, I just wanted to ask where you are, and also ask if you know where Tsubasa is, but I guess I didn’t have to ask that seeing that you guys are glued together.”_

“Okay, great, now you know,” she snapped. “I’m hanging up.”

 _“Wait, wait, wait,”_ Ayame panicked _. “We’re not done yet. I still don’t know where you guys are. We’re going home soon and I have to tell your mom something about where you are so she knows what to expect.”_

“We’re in Hikarigaoka Park,” Tsubasa answered for her as she gave him her phone. She needed to take her hair out. It was bothering her and it probably looked hideous by now.

 _“Really now?”_ her cousin asked in amused suspicion. _“What are you guys doing there of all places?”_

“We watched the fireworks, duh,” she replied as combed her hair with her hand, and seeing her do that just wanted him to grab her and kiss her senseless.

 _“That ended 15 minutes ago,”_ Ayame pointed out. _“You guys could have returned here a few minutes ago, but instead you guys decided to stay there. What did you guys do since then?”_

They shared a look between then from the corner of their eyes.

“We figured the streets were going to be crowded so we decided to wait it out till it becomes less congested,” he lied.

 _“Uh huh,”_ Ayame answered sarcastically. _“Yeah, it was so congested Ishizaki stepped on my foot. Wow, you have no idea how much I’m calling bull shit on that. Nice try though. A for effort.”_

She gave a glare to her cousin, who childishly stuck her tongue out to retaliate.

 _“Seriously I just want to know what you guys did,”_ she pleaded to them. _“It’s not like you guys did something private right?”_

Their love life was, and when she found out about how their current relationship is, then it’s not so private anymore.

 _“I don’t see why you guys have to hide it,”_ she continued, _“It’s not like you guys made out or anything.”_

They slowly looked at each other, staring for three seconds, before looking away with pink cheeks.

 _“What was that look for? Don’t tell me you guys actually- Holy shit, you guys did! Oh my god, no way,”_ they saw her look away from the screen and screaming, _“Guys, Tsubasa and Sanae finally kissed. They’re fucking dating now!”_

They also heard from the background, _“No way!”_ or _“You’re joking”_ or even _“Don’t make me hope like that!”_

Ayame replied by, _“I’m not! Just liste-“_ she then hastily looked back to them. _“Don’t leave okay. We’re coming there. We need details. Understood? Good,”_ and she finally pressed the end button.

They stared at her phone for a few seconds, before slowly turning to each other.

“So much for trying to keep it secret for a while,” she remarked.

He chuckled and wrapped an arm around her. “Hey, at least they’re the first ones to know. God knows how long they’ve been waiting for it.”

“Oh yeah,” she agreed as she put her head on his shoulder. “I think they even have a betting pool for it. I wonder who won.”

“Whoever it is must be really happy,” he remarked.

She chuckled amusingly and moved closer to him.

“But not as happy as us,” she pointed out as she removed her head from his shoulder.

This time it was his turn to chuckle, “Not as happy as us,” he agreed. Then he leaned down and finally took her lips for the third time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading everyone. its been a great journey


End file.
